American Idol Set to Return to Asia, First on Sony Channel

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Global Music Sensations Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan Take the Judges’ Hot Seats

American Idol, the iconic, genre-defining music reality series, returns to Asia at its new home on Sony Channel on Monday, March 12. Featuring superstar judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan, the season will take viewers on a mesmerizing musical journey to discover America’s next singing sensation. Emmy award-winning host and producer Ryan Seacrest will return as the host of the renowned series.

“American Idol is a series that truly revolutionized the TV landscape and pioneered the music competition genre. The sizzling new series makes its home on Sony Channel for the first time and is sure to captivate audiences across the region with its breadth of talent, musical variety and witty banter, courtesy of the three dynamic judges,” said Virginia Lim, Senior Vice President and Head of Content, Production and Marketing, Sony Pictures Television Networks Asia.

The nationwide search for the next superstar kicked off in August 2017, as the American Idol Bus travelled across the U.S.A covering 23 cities. Auditioning was made easier than ever as hopefuls also had the opportunity to submit audition videos online, as well as via select social platforms using an official tag #TheNextIdol, cultivating over 300,000 posts. Also, for the first time in American Idol history, hopefuls could audition through a live stream platform.

American Idol premieres on Sony Channel within 12-hours of its U.S. telecast on Monday, March 12 at 6:00pm. American Idol airs every Monday and Tuesday at 6.00pm, with same night encore at 9.45pm.

American Idol is produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment, a division of CORE Media Group. Executive producers include FremantleMedia North America’s Trish Kinane and Jennifer Mullin, along with co-executive Megan Wolflick.

Sony Channel is available on Cablelink Channel 39, Cignal Channel 120, Destiny Cable, Channel 35, G Sat Channel 48, and SKYCable Channel 35.

FamilyMart Gives You the Chance to Have a Fun-Filled Summer Getaway

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Summer is coming and it’s time for you to go on vacation mode. After working for so many hours, you deserve that break to relax and recharge. That’s why your go-to for daily essentials FamilyMart is giving you the chance to win awesome getaway packages where you get to bring along your barkada or family!

As the popular Japanese convenience store celebrates its 5th anniversary in the Philippines, FamilyMart is bringing you the 5x the Summer Fun Raffle Promo.

Get a chance to go on that dream #SQUADGOALS vacay, because the grand prize is a trip for four to Bali, Indonesia, which includes a 3-day, 2-night hotel stay and roundtrip airfare. One other lucky winner will receive the second prize of a trip for four to the beautiful island of Siargao.

Bali, Indonesia

Siargao

Siargao

Summer is also a great time to spend a chill #STAYCATION with the #FAMBAM. There will be one winner each of either a staycation package at Hotel H20 Manila with 4 passes to Manila Ocean Park, a luxurious stay at Nobu Hotel City of Dreams Manila plus 4 passes to DreamWorks entertainment playground DreamPlay, or a relaxing weekend at 5-star hotel resort Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila.

Hotel H2O

Nobu Hotel

Sofitel

Sofitel

Joining the raffle promo is easy. All you have to do is register for free via mobile by typing PFM Summer along with your name, complete address, email and send to 292-908. You’ll then receive a unique bCODE which you’ll scan at the counter every time you make a purchase. Registration is for one time only.

Get one entry for every purchase worth P80 in a single receipt. You can also double your chances of winning by purchasing major sponsor products to earn 4 bonus entries or minor sponsor products to get an additional 2 bonus entries. 

Don’t just daydream about alarm-clock free mornings or sunbathing at the beach, make it happen! Head on over to FamilyMart for your daily favorites and you might just win one memorable summer getaway.

Promo runs from March 15 to May 31. Per DTI-FTEB Permit No. 3663. Series of 2018.

For updates, exciting products, and awesome deals, like and follow FamilyMart Philippines on Facebook, @familymartph on Instagram, and @FamilyMartPH on Twitter. 

For store locations or more information on FamilyMart Philippines, log on to www.familymart.com.ph.

FamilyMart is the 2nd largest convenience store chain in the world with over 18,000 stores across Asia. In the Philippines, FamilyMart has branches in Makati, Fort Bonifacio, Quezon City, Mandaluyong, Pasig, Pasay, Alabang and Laguna.

Briones Underscores Importance of ICT in Teaching, Governance

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones underscored the importance of integrating Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in both teaching and governance for the delivery of quality, accessible, relevant, and liberating basic education for Filipino learners.

The Education chief noted this during the recently concluded National DepEd ICT Summit held from February 27 to 28 at The Blue Leaf Filipinas in Parañaque City, which was attended by around 700 ICT practitioners, leaders, policy-makers, achievers in ICT education, and other stakeholders nationwide.

Briones shared that through ICT, teachers may devise various teaching methods that will instill creativity and critical thinking in learners. She further conveyed her hopes for the time to come that schoolchildren will no longer be burdened to carry books in their backpacks because of ICT innovations.

“Ngayon napakarami nang technologies, napakarami nang gadgets, which make us do so many things and achieve so many goals and projects all at the same time… Kayang-kaya na nating mag-multi-task,” Briones stated.

Moreover, she highlighted how ICT can help fast-track the processes in the Department, “DepEd is a mammoth institution and with thousands of teaching and non-teaching personnel, technology may serve as an essential tool not just in teaching, but also in governance.”

“We’re going to overhaul the information system of the entire Department—the financial management system, accounting system, budget system, and all other processes,” Briones added.

Capacity building
To achieve these aspirations, the Secretary mentioned that teachers and non-teaching personnel handling concerns in ICT must undergo trainings, especially those who finished their education when technology was not as advanced as it is today.

“Malaking bagay ‘yung capacity building ngteachers and personnel. Kasi isipin ninyo, ‘yung Secretary, hindi masyadong marunong saICT eh… So even I, myself, have to upgrade my skills and knowledge in ICT,” Briones said.

Best projects
In the same Summit, the Department, through its ICT Service (ICTS), recognized and awarded innovations in utilizing ICT to effectively deliver teaching and learning, as well as provide efficient governance and operations, directly to learners, teachers, and other education stakeholders.

“We will also recognize best projects to reward those who innovate… Because after all, education is not just about memorizing facts, it's also about being creative, about finding solutions to problems, and it's about dealing, accepting, living and adjusting with change,” the Secretary pointed out.

The winners for the Best ICT Innovations for Teaching and Learning are Regions VII, XII (CARAGA), and IV-A (CALABARZON), while the winners for the Best ICT Innovations for Governance are Regions III, X, and VI.

Ways forward
Furthermore, Undersecretary for Administration Alain Del Pascua and ICTS Director Abram Abanil led the forum with all the Summit participants to gather insights and comments which will be used in the advancement of various ICT projects and programs.

“I don’t think we can survive without ICT. We will surely go back to the dark ages if we ignore ICT... We have to remember that ICT is primarily a tool which helps us in making decisions, in understanding the world that we live in, and in finding solutions,” Briones said.

“At the end of the day, it is still us—the users of technology—who are responsible for making things happen,” she concluded.