Monday, July 26, 2021

Collecting authentic Sports Memorabilia pays off

Acquiring sports collectibles from best teams and renown athletes is a unique hobby that will pay you back with huge dividends later on. Taking up a collecting authentic sports memorabilia really pays off.
Signed jerseys, autographed posters, a shoe worn by a famous athlete with his signature, a baseball thrown by a legendary player, even a commemorative t-shirt or pennant, these things have tremendous monetary value simply because they have been immortalized by their famous owners, a historic sports moment, or a legendary place.
Rabid sports memorabilia collectors search for their treasures from all places. They travel, they join collectors groups, they seek out fellow collectors to buy their collections, or they order online. 

Now collecting authentic sports memorabilia just got easier for Pinoy aficionados. The one and only trustworthy authorized internet retailer of authenticated signed sports memorabilia is now in the Philippines. They are Hall of Fame Authentics or HOFA.


Through this online-based provider, fans of different sports can get their much-coveted signed memorabilia from basketball, boxing, baseball, football, hockey, golf, and soccer athletes around the globe. A vast array of items that range from autographed and even game-worn uniforms, caps, jackets, shoes, posters, balls, among others are just a click away. Launched in 2018, HOFA has over 5,000 choices of 100% authenticated signed items from various athletes –supplied by world-renowned brands like Upper Deck, Panini, and Fanatics.

How do you get started in this special and unique hobby? HOFA owner and managing partner Ron Uy offers a 101:

Sports memorabilia collecting does not always have to be about GOATs like Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, Tom Brady, Kobe Bryant or Floyd Mayweather. Seasoned collectors do go for the legends, all-stars and superstars, but one can start with promising rookies or role players as well and end up with a lucrative haul too. HOFA has items that fit varying budgets with goods coming from a wide range of athletes – from rookies to veterans, and even retired superstars. To start, here are some steps fans may want to consider and think about before diving all in. 

 1. Focus on the sport you love – Pick the sport that you feel a very strong connection to. Maybe your Dad taught you to love the game when you were little. Maybe you fell in love with it on your own. Twenty or thirty years later, you still have that same love and passion for the sport. Buy memorabilia items based on that sport. 

 2. Celebrate your favorite team –Families often have favorite teams. Wave your family banner high by going for a team item. Or maybe there’s a team you admire through and through and appreciate everything about it. Look for jerseys, t-shirts, signed posters or shoes that will show your loyalty to your favorite team. 

 3. Honor your favorite player – There will always be sports fans who are going to be loyal to certain athletes through the highs and lows of their careers. Take LeBron James. He has played for three different NBA teams but his fans from around the world support him wherever he goes to play. Owning a thing or two signed by your idol, whoever he or she is, will be a treasure for all time. 

 4. Search for the particular item that you like on the site – Not all jerseys, caps, t-shirts or posters are the same. Pick out the one that suits your taste or really speaks to you. Pay attention to the color, consider the design. Most important, look at the price. Do the necessary pros and cons exercise. Then make your decision. 

 5. Follow the steps. Now that you’ve made your decision on hofa.ph, pick the memorabilia you want to own and add to cart. Provide your details and check out. You will get a confirmation email that will provide further instructions. You may also opt to direct message HOFA on Facebook and Instagram to ask if the product you want is available even before you purchase it. All HOFA items are inclusive of 12% VAT and are available through different options such as credit card, PayPal, installment, and even layaway plans. Product arrives between 2 to 4 weeks. 

 6. Enjoy! – Finally the long-awaited signed ball, or boxing glove, or baseball cap has arrived. It comes in a secure glass case that you can put on display and admire every day. Recall that golden moment when your favorite team or athlete made history. Michael Jordan’s signed basketball? Wayne Gretsky’s hockey helmet? Tom Brady’s football shirt? Tiger Woods’ golf shoes? It’s yours now.

The best part about starting your memorabilia collection through an online store like hofa.ph is that you can make your sports dreams come true without even leaving home. 

 Go to hofa.ph or facebook.com/hofa.ph and Instagram @hofa.ph for more information about authentic sports memorabilia.

Tuesday, July 6, 2021

SQREEM AI tracking solution that helps users monitor the COVID-19 situation by Finding Hospital Beds and Ventilators



After tracing a million steps for contact tracing last year, Singapore-based AI solutions firm SQREEM Technologies has launched a new COVID-19 tracking tool to aid in the battle against the virus – a real time system that tracks live COVID-19 data, including available hospital beds and ventilators by zip code.

Named “Data Natin,” meaning our data in Tagalog, the AI-powered tool is now being used in the Philippines, where COVID-19 cases have reached an all-time high. The country currently has one of the highest numbers of cases in Southeast Asia.

Named as one of Asia’s fastest-growing companies by the Financial Times, for two years running, SQREEM is the world’s largest “behavioural pattern data aggregator” that collects, analyses, and creates a database of open data on the Internet using its own Artificial Intelligence technology. The Singapore-based tech company provides data analysis services to more than 100 companies and government agencies across various industries.


After redesigning, recoding and further developing their technology to augment government contact tracing efforts worldwide last year, the same AI system has now been re-adapted to track available hospital beds and ventilators in real time, as well as to provide an updated rundown of cases in a given geographical location. SQREEM invested USD$500,000 in time and resources to create the tracker which will help doctors and patients in their crucial race against time – especially in urban hotspots where there may not be sufficient hospital beds for patients.

“We recognised that the Philippines was doing stellar work making data around incidences of COVID available with data points such as the availability of beds and ventilators being accessible to the public, but it was unstructured”, Ian Chapman-Banks, CEO and co-founder of SQREEM, explains. “Learning from our experience in the contact tracing world, the goal was to produce updated and meaningful data, organised by live tracking dashboards so that people can get to the resources they need more efficiently. For healthcare providers, this means a more equitable distribution of patients resulting in less burden for certain clinics and hospitals. This is part of our initiative to lend support to countries as we had done in the past.”

With SQREEM’s expertise in artificial intelligence systems and machine learning, the team leveraged its AI capabilities to feed on unstructured information, access its insights, and extract relevant information in a short span of time. As Ian adds, “We were able to leverage our capabilities in taking and making massive datasets meaningful and relevant to people. So health care practitioners as well as patients and their families can assess in real time which hospitals are available. We can help them to further understand the COVID-19 situation in their immediate location – whether it's within a zip code or a small geographic area – so they can exercise more caution whenever they go out.” Using artificial intelligence to make sense of government data SQREEM’s Data Natin utilises publicly available data to track and showcase information in real time. From the dashboard, users can monitor the spread of infection in their area according to age, level of severity, city, or neighbourhood. Viewers can also track hospitals’ capacity within their locale and in nearby areas – learning which hospitals have available COVID or ICU beds and ventilators at a glance. This allows users to make informed and timely decisions that can improve a patient’s chances of recovery.

Applying their solution to the Philippine setting, the SQREEM CEO elaborates, “We've taken a lot of disparate and unstructured data from all over the Philippines and organised it in one central place. The platform is updated every 24 hours, every time new data is released.”

According to Ian, aside from helping doctors and patients locate much-needed hospital beds and ventilators, the platform can be leveraged for more informed government policy-making and community planning. “When you're seeing trends of infections and how it's spreading, the government can use this as a tool as a knowledge base to make decisions and policies. And so you could do logistics planning because you know a surge is coming. Local communities can also use this as a tool so they can act on their own and take steps to control the spread within their own neighbourhood.”

About SQREEM

SQREEM is the world's largest "behavioural pattern data aggregator" that collects, analyses, and creates a database of open data on the Internet using its own AI technology. Based on this technology, we provide data analysis and programmatic targeting services to more than 100 companies and government agencies across various industries. SQREEM has also been identified as one of Asia’s fastest-growing companies by the Financial Times for two years running.



Sunday, March 14, 2021

Get ready for Love La Union Digital Travel and Tourism Expo!



Mark your calendars as the much-awaited 𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙇𝙖 𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝘿𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙡 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙏𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙢 𝙀𝙭𝙥𝙤 happens this March 15 - April 15, 2021!





The said digital b2b and b2c expo features one of the largest selection of 𝗟𝗮 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 tourism products!

Download the EXPO PH EVENT MOBILE APP on ANDROID and IOS NOW!

This exhibit is presented by the Provincial Government of 𝗟𝗮 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 through the 𝗟𝗮 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 Provincial Tourism Office.

Digital Event Venue and Media Platform: Expo Ph Mobile App, ACES multimedia ph and ATFC

Virtual streaming partner: KUMU App

Official media partners:

Philippine Daily inquirer
Mindanao Daily
Businessweek Mindanao
Panay News
Village Connect
LionhearTV
Magic 89.9
Wave 89.1


Visit 𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙇𝙖 𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣 official facebook page or Call (242) 5550 to 53 local 286 or Telefax number (072) 607 9692 Now!



#LaUnionLaUnay
#LoveLaUnion
#LoveLaUnionExpo
#ExpophMobileApp

Thursday, March 11, 2021

La Union to launch DIGITAL TRAVEL AND TOURISM EXPO


The wave beckons and the mountain calls as La Union reopens its gates once again for tourism. The Provincial Government of La Union (PGLU) through the La Union Provincial Tourism Office (LUPTO) stages the Love La Union Digital Travel and Tourism Expo on March 15 to April 15, 2021 for an an endless summer of waves and bonfires. The Love La Union Digital Travel and Tourism Expo is an online and mobile app platform featuring tourism and travel destinations in the province. It offers travel and tour packages even made more affordable for the Digital Event. La Union is the first spot surf charters usually stop at when traveling up north. Surfers have been hitting this spot for thrilling rides. This Surfing Capital of the North offers super-chill vibe of a perfect beach town. The Love La Union Digital Travel and Tourism Expo contains information of various tourism destinations that would make one fall in love with La Union.

To be able to join the Digital Expo, one must download the EXPO PH Mobile App on their mobile phones. The App is available through Google Playstore for Android phones and Appstore for IOS. After downloading the App, one can search for the Love La Union Digital Travel and Tourism Expo and browse through its wide array of offers.

The said Digital Event is PGLU’s way of assisting its local tourism stakeholders to help them bounce back from the COVID-19 Pandemic. The event is expected to help revive the tourism industry in the province. Love La Union Digital Travel and Tourism Expo provides a venue for tourists coming from all over the world, to start creating fond memories once again.

Visit Love La Union official Facebook page or call (242) 5550 to 53 local 286 or telefax number (072) 607 9692 for more information. With the LOVE LA UNION DIGITAL TRAVEL AND TOURISM Expo, you get the best of LA UNION in the palm of your hands!


Brought to you by ExpoPH.com



Monday, February 22, 2021

Be a micropreneur for as low as P1,500 with the Mekeni Home2Home Partner Program


The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on businesses, especially micro, small, and medium enterprises. However, this did not dampen the spirit of microprenuers who turned to online and home-based selling as a way to cope with the economic effects of the global health crisis.

Seeing the perseverance of Filipinos to provide for their families amid the crisis, Mekeni Food Corporation started a program that brings value to its customers and communities. Through the Mekeni Home2Home Partner Program, the food manufacturing company reaches out to Filipino micropreneurs to kickstart their business ventures at home. With the program, Mekeni is not only able to tap external distributors to expand their reach, but the company is also able to provide income-generating opportunities for starting micropreneurs.


For as low as P1,500, Mekeni Home2Home partners can already avail of the basic package. Their packages are customizable and can include some of Mekeni’s best-selling products like Classic Pork Tocino, Belly Bacon, Picnic Hotdog, Gluten-free Chicken Longanisa, and even street food from the Bayani product line like squid balls, kikiam, siopao, siomai, and the famous party-favorite, lumpiang shanghai.

Aside from the affordable starter package, Mekeni is also boosting micropreneurs through online and offline tools that they can use to promote their budding business.

To help their partners jumpstart their business, Mekeni provides them a free business starter kit and promotional materials such as ready-to-post social media cards and ready-to-print tarpaulin layout. Partners also receive exclusive promos and freebies and can avail of the products at a wholesale price.

Mekeni is also providing unlimited business consultation to its Home2Home partners. Through this, Mekeni is able to take care of their partners by empowering and enabling them with strategies that will help them sell more even while at the comfort of their homes.

Mekeni partners can attest to the numerous benefits that the company is able to provide them through this reseller program. And you, too, can experience the added value that Mekeni puts to its partners when you join the H2H Partner Program! Start the new year by becoming a micropreneur when you apply to become an official partner or reseller of Mekeni products! You just have to sign up at https://bit.ly/MekeniBusinessPartnerForm and wait for at least a week as the application will still undergo verification and assessment. You may opt to either sell products through online selling or home-based selling to your own customer base.

Visit Mekeni’s official Facebook page at www.facebook.com/mekeniphto know more about the Mekeni Home2Home Partner Program.

Sunday, February 21, 2021

Tales of Arcadia: 3Below premieres this March 1

DreamWorks - NBCUniversal International Networks' 24-hour channel dedicated to kids and family entertainment announced the channel premiere of Tales of Arcadia: 3Below. The new series will unlock 13, 30-minute episodes, each showcasing out-of-this-world storytelling and intergalactic sci-fi fantasy that is set to keep viewers tuning in. The series will premiere on DreamWorks from Monday, March 1 at 7:20 Pm (PHT).
3Below is an American computer-animated science fantasy television series produced by DreamWorks Animation, and is the second installment of Guillermo del Toro's award-winning Tales of Arcadia trilogy, a saga of shared stories about a seemingly ordinary town filled with unexpected heroes who rise to fight the dark forces that reside there.


In a battle of heroes and villains, Tales of Arcadia: 3Below will follow two royal teenage aliens and their bodyguard as they flee a surprise takeover of their home planet by an evil dictator and crash land in Arcadia. On the run from intergalactic bounty hunters and prying humans, they struggle to blend in and adapt to the bizarre world of high school all the while attempting to repair their ship so they can return and defend their home planet. Loaded with action and adventure, Tales of Arcadia: 3Below highlights the power of friendship and family with a touch of fish-out-of-water comedy.

Tales of Arcadia: 3Below will join a line up of fan favourite shows on DreamWorks, including the recently released series The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants, The Boss Baby: Back in Business and Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny in addition to Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, Dragons: Race to the Edge, The Adventures of Puss in Boots, and All Hail King Julien.

Tales of Arcadia: 3Below stars Tatiana Maslany, Diego Luna, Nick Offermanat.
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Sunday, February 14, 2021

Travel the World with Just One Click Away!

The National Association of Independent Travel Agencies - Philippines Inc. brings on the most trustworthy and reliable tour suppliers as the travel industry REBOOTS for a big comeback. 

Welcome to NAITAS TRAVEL SHOW 2020!

Watch out as the liveliest travel show and virtual B2B event for tour operators and travel agents goes live.

Naitas Travel Show 2020 is co-presented by the Tourism Promotions Board Philippines and in partnership with the Department of Tourism.

Connect to international and local tour operators plu over 1000 travel agents in the Philippines, and browse over a list of international and local tour operators until February 25, 2021 via EXPO PH Mobile App. EXPO PH is a free event management mobile app that acts as the official virtual event platform and marketing arm of Naitas Travel Show 2020. You may download the Expo Ph app for free on Android and Ios.

Naitas Travel Show 2020's Major Exhibitors include RIVIERA Tours and Travel, TBO Holidays Philippines, BELMONT Hotel Boracay, SAVOY Hotel Boracay Newcoast, HIS PHILIPPINES Travel Corp., TURKISH Airlines and The TRAVEL Depot will be streaming virtually via KUMU App through the collaborative efforts of EXPO PH, ACES Multimedia Ph and ATFC.

Official media partners:

Philippine Daily Inquirer, INQ.Subscription, Inquirer Lifestyle, Mindanao Daily, Businessweek Mindanao, Village Connect, LionheartTV, 90.7 Love Radio and Wave 89.1


Brought to you by ExpoPH.com

Visit NAITAS TRAVEL SHOW on Facebook or log on to WWW.GOEXPOPH.COM for more details. You may also contact 09778043787 and 028874-5686 for inquiries.

NAITAS TRAVEL SHOW 2020, the liveliest travel show and virtual B2B event is right within the palm of your hand!

Monday, January 18, 2021

NPAW 2020 Highlights The Importance of Play amidst Pandemic



In the face of global pandemic and natural disasters, our daily lives have been put to a standstill and many children have lost access to play. Because of this, a huge part of children’s activity, creativity and learning have come to a pause affecting their holistic development and overall wellbeing.

Moreover, some have placed play within the limiting context of “laru-laro lang”. With this, play advocates continuously address the misleading notion and provide the right perspective that play should be given priority as it is considered one of the basic rights of children as stated in Article 31 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Supporting the promotion on the right to play, the Philippine Play Coalition (PPC), a network of organizations which Unilab Foundation, Council for the Welfare of Children, World Vision Philippines, Unang Hakbang Foundation, Kythe Foundation, Tukod Foundation and Educo Philippines are actively involved in, has been working to ensure that every child will not miss their experience of play even amidst the time of pandemic. Amplifying this great cause, the National Play Advocacy Week 2020 was celebrated last November 16 to 22, 2020. The celebration successfully reached over 10,000 children via offline and online platforms, 300,000 Filipinos through online platforms and engaged 150 partners to participate and conduct play activities. The Local Government of Iloilo City, Lapu-Lapu City, and Zamboanga City also showed their strong support and eagerly participated in the celebration.

This 2021, Unilab Foundation is continuously strengthening its play advocacy under its program, Bayanihan for WellBeing (BWB), through the distribution of Resiliency Play Bags. These play bags aim to spark hope, harness creativity, and develop resilience and coping skills among Filipino children, who were not only strained by the presence of the coronavirus outbreak, but were also victims of the recent calamities that struck our nation in the previous year.

A Bayanihan for WellBeing Resiliency Play Bag is composed of the following:

1. Toys like sipa and kickball, which are intended to help children release tension.

2. Cape and mask which they could design, allowing them to identify their strengths and make them feel like Superheroes.

3. Writing and coloring sheets to encourage their creativity and help them express their emotions. As little as Php250 / $5.00 will help warm the heart of a child and build his/her resilience.

Donation can be done via bank deposit through the Bank of Philippine Islands:

Account Name: Unilab Foundation, Inc.

Account Number: 0181-0489-72 Branch:

BPI, Mandaluyong Swift Code: BOPIPHM

or via PayPal at healthierPH@unilabfoundation.org

Finally, a screenshot of your donation transaction needs to be sent to headsup@unilabfoundation.org.


Visit the Bayanihan for WellBeing Facebook page to support this worthy cause and share the initiative with your loved ones, friends and colleagues.

Let’s continue to make play happen this year. Let us nurture resilience and withstand change through the power of play!


Thursday, January 7, 2021

UP Men's Basketball Team and TopBreed treated UP Diliman's emotional support animals to a special Holiday pampering session



Nineteen dogs from the Emotional Support Animals (ESA) Program of the University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) received a Holiday treat from the UP Fighting Maroons Basketball Team and its newest sponsor TopBreed, the leading Philippine-made dog food brand in the country.

TopBreed provided the dogs with 900 kilograms of high-quality dog food and essentials like TopB+ vitamins and ShamPooch dog shampoo. The canines underwent general check-up and deworming, and were given anti-rabies vaccines administered by the TopBreed veterinarians. TopBreed provided pet supplies to ESA handlers from the different UPD colleges and units for dogs under their supervision. Efforts were coordinated with the Friends of Campus Animals (FOCA UP), the first campus-based animal welfare volunteer group that helps with the ESA program. UPD’s Balay Kaibigan houses the emotional support animals that also includes cats.



The project became a reality when TopBreed and the UPMBT reached out to the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs in early December and volunteered to help out UP Diliman’s Emotional Support Animals (ESA) Program. The program,which was launched in 2019 by then UPD Chancellor Michael Tan, provides psychosocial support for students and university staff that may experience stress, depression or anxiety. The program manages, trains and utilizes campus animals to render emotional and therapeutic support to those who need them.

“The University recognizes the ability of animals to help people destress. Therapy dogs are already being tapped in universities abroad to help students deal with academic stress. But even the ESA’s were not spared from the hardships of the pandemic,” said UP Diliman Vice-Chancellor for Community Affairs Dr. Aleli Bawagan. “We appreciate the efforts of Top Breed to vaccinate and deworm UPD's emotional support dogs and donate dog food. We look forward to more collaborations with them in the future.”

Universal Robina Corporation’s Agro-Industrial Group (URC-AIG) managing director Vincent Henry Go meanwhile said “TopBreed is thrilled to take part in the UP Doggo Day. We are very happy to be given a chance to express our brand’s mission of providing top care to pets specially to these dogs who have provided comfort and emotional support to those in need. We would like to commend UP for coming up with this brilliant program that benefits both animals and humans alike. We salute the University for this endeavor and for taking good care of our fur friends, the emotional support dogs.”