Frontrunners to succeed president Rodrigo Duterte in May vote include his daughter and Ferdinand Marcos’s son, with boxing star Manny Pacquia also in mix The Philippines’ election season has kicked off with TV celebrities, political scions and at least…
Apps to reach record highs in Q3 of 36B downloads and $34B in consumer spending
A new forecast on the state of the app economy indicates the third quarter will see record-breaking revenues spent on apps and games. According to App Annie, consumers worldwide will spend $34 billion on apps and games in Q3, a 20% year-over-year increase on spending. The increase indicates that the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on consumer […]
Boxer Manny Pacquiao to run for Philippines president
Popular senator pursues anti-corruption crusade, threatening jail for dishonest officialsThe boxer Manny Pacquiao has said he will run for president of the Philippines next year, after railing against corruption in government and President Rodrigo Dute…
Will she run for president? Duterte’s daughter keeps the Philippines guessing
Sara Duterte ahead in the polls despite refusing to commit to presidential raceIt was a decade ago, before her father had become Philippine president, that Sara Duterte attracted national attention. A local sheriff had ignored orders issued by her, the…
Facebook revamps its business tool lineup following threats to its ad targeting business
Facebook today is announcing the launch of new products and features for business owners, following the threat to its ad targeting business driven by Apple’s new privacy features, which now allow mobile users to opt out of being tracked across their iOS apps. The social networking giant has repeatedly argued that Apple’s changes would impact […]
ICC authorises full inquiry into Rodrigo Duterte’s ‘war on drugs’
‘Reasonable basis’ to believe crime against humanity committed in Philippines crackdown, say judgesThe international criminal court has authorised a full investigation into the Philippine president’s “war on drugs”, saying it resembled an illegitimate …
Financial comparison “super app” Jeff raises $1.5M seed extension
Financial services, especially those for people who don’t have access to traditional bank accounts or lines of credit, are proliferating in Southeast Asia. Jeff App wants to give consumers a “super app” where they can compare many financial products and apply for them using the startup’s proprietary data-scoring models. For service providers, Jeff serves as […]
Philippines’ Duterte agrees to run as vice-president in 2022
President’s ‘sacrifice’ paves way for leader to stay in power beyond June next yearThe Philippine president, Rodrigo Duterte, has agreed to be the ruling political party’s vice-presidential candidate in next year’s elections, laying the groundwork for …
Raging Delta variant takes its toll as Philippines runs out of nurses
Bad pay and conditions at home and demand for Filipino nursing skills overseas have left the country with a soaring death rateCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe Covid Delta variant has swept across south-east Asia over rece…
Spotify expands its radio DJ-like format, Music + Talk, to global creators
Last fall, Spotify introduced a new format that combined spoken word commentary with music, allowing creators to reproduce the radio-like experience of listening to a DJ or music journalist who shared their perspective on the tracks they would then play. Today, the company is making the format, which it calls “Music + Talk,” available to […]