California Pizza Kitchen’s exciting trio of promos

Get the chance to win a BlackBerry smartphone, SEAIR roundtrip ticket to Boracay or Batanes or gift certificates from CPK and various retail brands in the You Eat, You Win promo.


Get a free Valentine’s Sundae from now until February 15 for a minimum dine-in single receipt food purchase of P900 and receive a free ling-stemmed rose on Valentine’s Day.


Get a free herb onion focaccia with checca, a personal-size fettuccine with garlic cream chicken or an adobo chicken pizza for every minimum purchase with HSBC’s Delight with Every Swipe promo.


Celebrate the whole month of hearts at California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) and enjoy exciting treats plus the chance to win awesome prizes.

From now until February 15, indulge in a sweet treat when you receive a free Valentine’s sundae for a minimum dine-in single receipt food purchase of P900. On Valentine’s Day, dine at CPK and receive a free long-stemmed rose to get you into that romantic moment.

Dining at CPK using your HSBC credit card from now until February 28 also entitles you to get a reward for every minimum single receipt purchase. With HSBC’s Delight With Every Swipe promo, get a free herb onion focaccia with checca for a minimum single receipt purchase of P1,599 – P2,999, a free fettuccine with garlic cream chicken (personal) for a minimum purchase of P3,000 – P4,999 and a free adobo chicken pizza for a minimum purchase of P5,000 and above.

Finally, as if dining at CPK isn’t special enough, everyone wins in the You Eat, You Win promo. Get the chance to win a BlackBerry smartphone, SEAIR roundtrip ticket to Boracay or Batanes or gift certificates from CPK and various retail brands. To win, receive a CPK Prize Card when you dine with a minimum single purchase of P1,500. Good until February 28.

It’s all about love three times over with these amazing offers only at CPK. For more details, log on to http://www.cpk.com.ph or add us at http://www.facebook.com/CPKPhilippines.

Comedy queen Ai-Ai delas Alas begins 2011 with a bang!

Comedy queen Ai-Ai delas Alas leaps into the Year of the Rabbit feeling more blessed and successful than ever

The country’s one and only “Tanging Ina” and reigning comedy queen Ai-Ai delas Alas leaps into the Year of the Rabbit feeling more blessed and successful than ever.

She marked 2010 with a hit romantic-comedy series with Aga Muhlach, a successful anniversary concert dubbed Akin Ang Tronong ‘To, and more recently a Best Actress trophy for Ang Tanging Ina Mo (Last Na ‘To!) from the Metro Manila Film Festival Awards.

The award was a wish come true for Ai-Ai who shot to stardom via the successful Tanging Ina movie franchise, where she plays a single mother who goes through life’s unexpected twists and turns to provide for her more than a dozen kids.

With such an award and a very blessed 2010, Ai-Ai delas Alas is definitely in good spirits as she faces 2011. She’ll once again put on the judge’s hat for another exciting season of Pilipinas Got Talent. She also faces another challenging year in school as she continues her public administration course at the University of the Philippines.

For all the exciting things to come for her in showbiz and her personal life, Ai-Ai is glad she has Pharex Naproxen Sodium to keep her on her toes all the time. Whether she’s starring in another surefire box-office comedy, busy hitting the books, or playing her favorite role in the world as mom to her three children Sancho, Nicolo and Sophia, Ai-Ai trusts its 12-hour relief to alleviate back aches or even simple headaches.

For hardworking moms like Ai-Ai, Pharex Naproxen Sodium provides effective pain relief of mild to moderate pain, with or without inflammation, which is associated with musculoskeletal and joint disorders. Pharex Naproxen Sodium is under the Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug (NSAID) Family, which blocks the effects of induced inflammation, pain and fever. By blocking these enzymes, NSAIDs stop the body from making as many prostaglandins, which mean less swelling and less pain.

Because it is stronger that other painkillers in the market today, Ai-Ai is assured of long-lasting relief, so she can portray her roles in and out of showbiz without any worries from back aches and pains, migraine and dysmenorrhea. Pharex Naproxen Sodium is affordable, too, so mothers who are as busy as Ai-Ai can always rely on fast and effective relief that’s easy on the pocket.

On and off-camera, Ai-Ai delas Alas indeed reigns as comedy queen and true-blue Tanging Ina. As she starts 2011, she’s all set to take on her various roles in life with confidence and perfection.

Nokia N8 a hit among the country’s young A-list directors

Nokia N8

(From left) Treb Monteras II, Pepe Diokno and Paul Soriano

Two thumbs-up. Five stars. Today’s most popular smartphone from Nokia, the world’s number 1 mobile phone brand, is a runaway hit among today’s top young filmmakers Paul Soriano, Treb Monteras II and Pepe Diokno. The three were totally awestruck by the professional quality of the mobile phone, dubbed the world’s best entertainment smartphone.

Director Paul Soriano, who helmed indie films such as Chasing Manila and the upcoming Thelma (starring Maja Salvador), and who also directed the first Pier Roxas teaser commercial, says he was initially shocked when asked to shoot the said commercial using the N8 smartphone.

“I thought to myself, ‘Are you serious?’” Soriano recalls. “But I was willing to try anything, so we shot the commercial strictly on a Nokia N8. I was blown away by the quality, workflow, how easy it is to shoot with the phone, and how handy it was because you could put it in places where you don’t normally put a movie camera in.”

Soriano says he was most impressed with the high-definition, 12-megapixel video camera that is built with a Carl Zeiss lens. “With the Nokia N8, you get a quality professional video camera that you can put in your pocket. You just flip it out anytime, shoot pictures or videos and upload them online anytime, anywhere,” he adds.

After it was completed, the Pier Roxas TV commercial shot by Soriano now holds the distinction of being the first television advertisement in the Philippines to be shot entirely using a mobile phone.

Music video director Treb Monteras II also raves about the N8. Monteras, who has directed music videos for Gary Valenciano, Rico Blanco, Rivermaya, Urbandub and other big names in the music business, says today’s advancements in mobile technology had made filmmaking accessible to everybody.

“I used to bring a lot of gadgets with me everywhere I go,” relates Monteras. “The Nokia N8 is so easy to use that my three-year-old son films short videos with it. And I haven’t brought my laptop, my video camera and my DSLR with me since I got this phone. With this tool, you can focus more on your story rather than having to worry about technical stuff when using conventional cameras.”

But what really awed Monteras was the N8’s HDMI and USB connectivity. Users can plug the N8 to their television sets using the HDMI cable and they can view high-definition photos and videos straight from the phone - no need to convert videos to other formats or separate peripherals like a TV box. What’s more, the Nokia N8 has a built-in Dolby Digital Plus surround sound system, thus providing a theater-like experience even when viewing from the phone.

Monteras was so astounded with the N8 that he started a group in the video-sharing site Vimeo. The group, http://www.vimeo.com/groups/66769, has 12 members and 103 videos, all of which are compilations of Nokia N8 films.

Filmmaker Pepe Diokno, on the other hand, found the N8 perfect for capturing personal moments. The award-winning director, whose debut film Engkwentro won the Venice Film Festival’s Lion of the Future award, remarks that the phone’s shoot-edit-share feature makes it convenient for people to capture scenes on-the-go and polish them up before sharing to other people via YouTube, Facebook or any other social networking site. The smartphone’s editing features enable the user to add titles and other text that’s usually done through professional computer desktop programs.

But aside from a high-definition camera, Diokno says the N8 has helped him in doing research, taking down notes and recording interviews. Thanks to a powerful processor and a 16-gigabyte memory, the N8 is also a PDF viewer, a web browser, a music player and a notebook all rolled into one. What’s more, its multitasking capability allows the user to switch between applications with a touch of a finger.

For these renowned filmmakers, the Nokia N8 was the device that helped them rediscover new and infinite ways of pursuing their art for imitating life. And like them, aspiring filmmakers and video hobbyists can use this highly advanced, yet compact tool to discover new angles and point of views in capturing, transforming and sharing moments of our lives.

Nokia recognizes real-life Santas – Nokia Philippines’ general manager Benoit Nalin (3^rd from left) recently awarded plaques of recognition to its top business partners for their philanthropic projects., Jun Sy of TAO Group of Companies and Altus Communications (2^nd from left) and Michael Tan of Axis Global Technologies (2^nd from right) were dubbed real-life Santas by Nokia Philippines. Sy’s companies support youth sports development through its sponsorship of the Nokia RP Team and by providing public education to indigent beneficiaries through the Taus-Puso Foundation. Tan’s Axis Global Technologies, on the other hand, has been recognized for actively supporting youth development through the KIDS Foundation and providing assistance to poor schools in Negros. The real-life Santas were awarded during Nokia Philippines’ annual Christmas celebration dubbed “Search for Santa” held at the Newport Plaza in Resorts World, Pasay City. With the awardees are (from left) host Jess James; John Quimbo of TAO Group of Companies and Altus Communications; Edison Ng of Axis Global Technologies; and host Lani Pillinger.

MasterCard launches financial management website

MasterCard recently launched Priceless Pointers, a personal finance management website to help Filipino consumers keep their financial life pointed towards the right direction. Located at www.mastercard.com/sea/pointers, the website offers a suite of tools to help consumers save well and spend wisely. Priceless Pointers has resources, tips and links containing helpful hints and informative videos on how to manage debt, plan your retirement or save effectively. Open to everyone, whether you are a MasterCard cardholder or not, you can enjoy an interactive experience using any of the website’s eight insightful sections, which include: Video Pointers, Purchase Power, Payoff Accelerator, Savings Target, Retirement Calculator, Credit FAQ, Debt FAQ and Financial Glossary. Through Priceless Pointers, MasterCard strongly underscores its effort to promote financial literacy. In photo during the successful launch are (from left) Judith Marie Dayrit, MasterCard VP for marketing and member relations; Kara-Mae Lim, MasterCard AVP, South East Asia and Poch Villa-Real, MasterCard country manager.

Nokia and Microsoft develop best mobile business solutions

Nokia, the world’s no. 1 mobile phone manufacturer, has formed an alliance with Microsoft, the world’s leader in software, to design, develop and market mobile productivity solutions to Nokia smartphones.

The solution delivers direct, secure access to email and personal information through the organizations’ Microsoft Exchange servers, enabling employees to connect to their corporate mail server with their Nokia smartphone without the need for additional servers. It is fast becoming the solution of choice among businesses since it became available for Nokia Smartphones on more than 550 operator networks worldwide.

Using Microsoft^® Exchange, you can deploy Mail for Exchange to synchronize email, calendar, contacts and tasks on over 50 Nokia smartphone models, including the Nokia E5, Nokia E52, Nokia E72 and Nokia E63.

“IT directors are being pressured to deploy business mobility solutions such as email, IM and intranet access for more employees, but without the high costs they have had to spend on additional middleware, licenses and maintenance,” says Benoit Nalin, General Manager of Nokia Philippines.

“Nokia is doing more than any other handset company to help businesses go mobile. Microsoft will design and develop mobile productivity, communication and collaboration solutions, and we will jointly bring them to market – giving our smartphones the edge over the competition,” added Nalin.

In addition to accessing email, if your company has a Microsoft^® Office Communications Server or Lync 2010, employees also enjoy direct access to corporate instant messaging through Microsoft^® Communicator Mobile, which was the first new application to be delivered by the two companies as part of their strategic alliance announced last year. This solution is already available on the Nokia E5, Nokia E52 and Nokia E72 smartphones.

The Nokia business smartphones are powerful mobile offices that offer business grade security solutions for secure corporate connectivity. Users of these business-optimized devices also enjoy access to maps, navigation, apps and other services through Ovi. Business category apps in the Ovi Store, such as Worldmate, F-Secure Anti-Theft for Mobile, Boingo, Bloomberg and ClicktheCity, have also significantly increased in popularity.

“We are very happy to collaborate with Nokia in creating a set of services that will give Filipinos control over their personal and business tasks, as well as enable individuals to accomplish work more efficiently with Microsoft business solutions,” said John Bessey, Managing Director, Microsoft Philippines. “With this partnership, we hope to maximize the potential of the smartphone market by letting users take full advantage of the benefits of Microsoft’s innovative unified communications technologies such as Microsoft Exchange Server and the recently launched Microsoft Lync Server 2010.”

The alliance of Nokia and Microsoft will continue to provide businesses easy mobilization and maximized IT investments. Overtime, the two companies plan to deliver Microsoft Office Mobile and related applications, including mobile-optimized versions of Word Mobile, Excel Mobile, PowerPoint Mobile and OneNote Mobile to Nokia smartphones. And people can eventually access intranet and extranet portals built on Microsoft SharePoint on their Nokia devices.

Through business messaging solutions that are developed, tested and certified by Microsoft, Nokia will be able to give new user experiences that will better meet the needs of mobile professionals.

Pinoy game Tong-its now on your Nokia phones

Local game app World Tong-its Tour is currently one of the highest-rated card games on the Ovi Store, with popularity that extends to other SEA countries like Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia

The Filipino app developers behind World Tong-its Tour: Automated Systems Enablers Inc. president Cris Bella and chief financial officer Abel Canare

What’s your favorite Pinoy game? We Pinoys have such fondness for the traditional games we grew up with. That’s because they bring back fun memories we shared with siblings or friends back home. One of the most popular Pinoy games is tong-its, which for a majority of Pinoys have became the default entertainment from the small barangays in the Metro to far-flung barrios in the provinces.

And now this all-time favorite Pinoy card game can be played anytime, wherever you are in the world. Tong-its has finally come to roost for Nokia smartphones, thanks to a small start-up app developer company in Cavite that’s big on creativity and can-do attitude.

Automated Systems Enablers Inc. (ASEi) started in June 2009 when the multinational company they worked for shut down its operations. Engineers Cris Balla, Abel Canare, and 10 other colleagues decided to start a venture that would focus on developing software for different markets. ASEi started with generic recording and accounting programs for schools until they realized the growing potential of developing applications for smartphones. Applications, after all, have become the backbone of success for many smartphone brands. A mobile phone today is not only a messaging and image-capturing instrument. It has also become an entertainment device, a productivity tool and a gaming center.

“Mobile phones today are as powerful as computers were 10 years ago,” ASEi president Chris Balla says. “Nokia phones, for example, have powerful microprocessors that are capable of handling and running complicated applications.”

ASEi had the opportunity to develop for other smartphone brands and platforms, but what attracted the company to Nokia is the openness of the Symbian system, the ubiquity of Nokia handsets among Filipino smartphone users and the Ovi Store. Symbian is the only smartphone operating system that is capable of supporting a full spectrum of devices, from low-end QWERTY phones to sleek high-end touch screen gizmos. What’s more, the platform also supports a number of universal programming languages such Java, HTML 5, Qt, and Qt Quick. This is a far cry from other systems that are tightly regulated and application development requires specific coding.

Another factor that nudged ASEi to develop for Nokia was the Ovi Store which can be accessed directly from any Nokia smartphone or through the Internet using any computer. It does not require a separate program to be accessed. Users just sign up for free and they can immediately browse and download away. In fact, on a daily basis there are 3.5 million downloads from the Ovi Store globally, which includes themes, games, videos, applications and so much more. This ease of access is essential for a young company like ASEi, which is seeking for exposure and ramp up its application downloads in the already crowded app developer market.

ASEi had its first entry to Ovi Store in January 2010 when it introduced the Jeepney Grand Prix, a racing game set in EDSA. Because it was a paid application sold in other countries, it did not perform as expected and was pulled from the Ovi Store months later. Not to be discouraged, ASEi developed a game based on a popular Filipino pastime: tong-its. World Tong-its Tour entered the Ovi Store in June 2010 and has become a hit ever since.

Like the World Poker Tour, the World Tong-its Tour takes place in three different settings: Boracay (the easiest level), Macau (intermediate level) and Las Vegas (expert level). Wagers and earnings increase as you successfully advance to another level, but if you think you can easily outsmart your opponents on this game, you’re in for a big surprise. There is a time limit of 35 seconds per turn, so if you’re the kind of player who thinks too long before every move, you will certainly lose. Also, the AI (artificial intelligence) built into the game is purposely designed to be challenging.

“We deliberately stayed away from developing an AI that can be easily beaten because we wanted players to think. Tong-its is as much a game of skill as it is a game of instinct and luck,” explains Balla.

World Tong-its Tour players will also find the game’s user interface helpful and convenient. There is a Sort button that can organize your cards according to number color, an Auto button that can help you choose which “made” cards you can post or lay out on the table, and an Attach button that assists you in placing cards on “made” ones on the table. The game’s sound effects are also humorous, such as when your computer opponent completes a made card or wins a round.

What sets World Tong-its Tour from other card games are its additional features. World Tong-Its Tour is the only card game with the ability to use the phone’s camera to shoot your own customized game avatar. What’s more, the game’s online play feature allows you to play tong-its with two of your friends via wi-fi or 3G connection.

The World Tong-its Tour has become so successful (it is one of the highest-rated card games on Ovi Store) it spawned another tong-its game from ASEi. Called Tong-its Extreme, it features multiple personalities and different artificial intelligence engines. Unlike the World Tong-its Tour, Tong-its Extreme offers unlimited chips so you can play to your heart’s delight.

The reception of Filipinos to the two tong-its games and the popularity of World Tong-its Tour in other SEA countries like Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia has prompted ASEi to develop more apps based on popular Filipino games. In fact, ASEi will soon be releasing Pusoy and Pusoy Dos games on the Ovi Store.This strategy not only differentiates their apps on the market but also capitalizes on Filipinos’ preference for Nokia phones both here and abroad. After all, no matter where they go, what twang they acquire or nationalities they assume, Pinoys will always be Pinoys.