ePLDT VITRO Makati and Clark: The Only Data Centers in PH with Global Tier 3 Certificate

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Companies are highly dependent on IT in delivering mission-critical services. With this, it has become a standard for colocation providers to design their data centers with high availability and efficiency in mind to ensure that their customers’ businesses are at their optimal state.

ePLDT, Inc., with its ongoing efforts to push for business resilience through its network of data centers, recently announced that its two flagship VITRO Data Centers in Makati City and Clark, Pampanga are the first and only in the country to receive the ANSI/TIA-942 Rated 3 Design Certificate. The standard is based on all physical infrastructure like site location, fire safety, architectural, electrical, mechanical, security, telecommunication and other critical data center requirements.

The guidelines set by ANSI/TIA-942 emphasized the redundancy design of the data centers to ensure the highest availability during unplanned maintenance and infrastructure expansion. This means that ePLDT’s data centers in Makati and Clark have a concurrently maintainable site infrastructure where each of its components—including all the circuit breakers, panel boards and power strips—can be removed, replaced or serviced without affecting the operations of colocation customers.

“Choosing the right data center that supports the growth trajectory of local businesses is a critical decision for owners,” said Nerisse Ramos, Chief Operating Officer of ePLDT Group. “Because of that, we designed our data centers based on the latest best practices in the industry, putting a premium on the business resiliency needs of today’s businesses in the country. To receive such certificate means that the data centers adopted international infrastructure design yet are flexible enough to suffice the needs of local businesses.” 

Ragnarok Online Closed Beta is Now Open

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Ragnarok Online (RO), the most popular MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) in the Philippines which revolutionized the landscape of online gaming will once again open the gates of Rune Midgard.

Publishing partner companies Electronics Extreme Ltd., and ELITE, began its CLOSED BETA TEST on June 20, 2017, 3:00 pm. Henceforth, beta testers got firsthand experience and involvement on this phase by helping the ROPH team in providing the best MMORPG experience.

During the Ragnarok Online’s Q & A Session, last May 12, 2017, Kamphee “Ken” Phiromwad, Managing Director of Electronics Extreme, and ELITE CEO Johnny Paek revealed some of the most awaited game details:

·         It will be protected by EasyDefender (Solid proof from Thailand), this improves the game experience with its anti-bot and cheat protection systems;

·         FREE TO WIN: All Key-items could be dropped in game. All you need is teamwork and assiduity. It will provide everything that gamers need to advance and thrive in-game;

·         An special Revo-Classic version of the game starting with the 2-1 class, with class 2-2 and high class expected within 6 months and 1-2 years, respectively;

·         The return of the demised Morroc Town;

·         Monsters will be back to their original spawn point and will ignore the level differences between players and monsters;

·         Guild Wars will be released within the first 3 weeks with Godly Items not be immediately available but will soon be released;

·         Customized events for the Philippines;

·         Revival of team competition through the Ragnarok World Championship; and

·         There will be 2 available servers in CBT, namely, Thor and Loki.

ELITE, ensures that there is a continuous improvement of game experience through gathering of data during and after CBT. There is also a 24/7 customer support that will be available to handle all concerns that the players may encounter.

*CBT Client ready for download on their official website.

Fil-Am Whiz from Silicon Valley to Keynote 5th Geeks On A Beach

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Helping raise roughly $40 million for a Silicon Valley company before it produced its first intelligent wearable headset is just one of several feats for this Filipino-American for a serial entrepreneur and "World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer" awardee.

Yobie Benjamin can talk about several amazing things during the 5th Geeks on a Beach (GOAB 5) in Puerto Princesa, Palawan on August 24-25, said Tina Amper of TechTalks.ph and organizer of this annual tech startup event in the Philippines.

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is GOAB co-organizer.

TechTalks.ph members Happy Garaje is responsible for branding; PRworks for media and public relations; and Sym.ph for web development of Geeks on a Beach.

“We hope the presence of Benjamin will inspire local startups and M SMEs. But more important, we are looking forward to having this global technology leader to interact with industry leaders and the startup community to drive action for the betterment of the Philippines and the world. GOAB continues to aim for measurable impact by facilitating potential projects and business deals not only for individual companies but also for the Philippine startup ecosystem,” Amper said.

For starters, Amper pointed out that this former political prisoner during the Marcos dictatorship days raised $40 million for Avegant, the company that makes and sells the Avegant virtual reality video headset and Skully, an intelligent motorcycle helmet that helps you see what is happening at the back, receive and make calls, and communicate with nearby vehicles.

Benjamin recently raised $18.5 million for Token that provides software to banks that enables them to issue a new payment type designed specifically for use in the digital era.

According to Amper, Geeks on a Beach gathers hundreds of technology entrepreneurs and professionals along with concerned government agencies to also look at ways of leveraging technology to help address Philippine social and environmental problems.

Amper said, this former political prisoner’s social concerns can be seen in his involvement in yet another company that is developing the ability to perform 50 diagnostic tests using only a drop of blood. This service, he said in a talk at Stanford University in Silicon Valley, will soon be given for free to whole populations in return for big data.

In Kenya, Benjamin is involved in Wildlife Works that sells carbon credits for protecting the rainforest and wildlife from poachers. The poachers, he said, included Al Shabbab terrorists. In Brazil, Benjamin’s company applied the same business model to mobilize the coastal population to protect mangrove forests.

Geeks on a Beach has partnered with the City of Puerto Princesa in Palawan. Known for its environmental advocacy, the city is the location of the world-famous underground river. The Tubbataha Reef, one of the world’s biggest ecosystem, is located some 92 nautical miles southeast of Puerto Princesa.

PLDT Innolab is supporting GOAB 5 as co-presenter while A Space is co-producer. The sponsors include Payoneer, Z alora, PouchNATION, Istorya.net, Synergy 88 Digital, Uniform Solutions, and NXTLVL Academy.

The media partners are e27, Tech in Asia, Auza.net, Innopub Media, Geeks in Cambodia, Asian Journal Publications, Balikbayan Magazine, Mobile Ecosystem Forum, ConnectedWomen.co and QueenCityCebu.com, The organizational partners are the Philippine Software Industry Association, the National ICT Confederation of the Philippines, UP CebuINIT, Digital Commerce Association of the Philippines, Developers Connect,Science and Technology Advisory Council - Silicon Valley, Mynimo, Teradoor, Israel Chamber of Commerce Philippines, and the Cloud Security Alliance Philippines.

GOAB is organized by Techtalks.ph, powered by Sym.ph, branding by Happy Garaje, and pr by PRWorks.