The All-Powerful and Almighty Mobile Phone

After watching the video, this is the only thing I have to say:  one cannot afford to be complacent and rest on one’s laurels.   Advancements in information technology have been so rapid that one has to continuously evolve to stay on top.  Take the case of the mobile phone.  You paid a fortune for the latest model of a Nokia phone only to find out that its value will be half of the original price when you bought it six months ago.  It lost its luster with the arrival of newer and more improved models.

New technology has put quite a few gadgets obsolete.  Who can forget the Easy Call beepers, PDAs, analog mobile phones, Kodak instamatic cameras?  These were the essentials years back but today one will not be caught one with it.  Traditional media have not been spared from the advent of this new technology.  Newspapers are suffering declines in circulation while television and radio companies are losing ad revenues to non-traditional media.  Marketers and manufacturers are forced to go back to the drawing board to think of ways to catch the attention of the average consumer.  New technology saw the emergence of the prosumer, the empowered consumer.  The consumer now has a say to the products he wants to buy. It’s as if he has contributed something to the creation of a product by way of offering feedbacks and comments.

Did you know that mobile service will be the world’s primary connection tool to the internet in 2020? It is but logical that since the prosumer is King, marketers will tailor-fit their advertising initiatives to his needs.  The medium used by which to reach him should take into consideration his convenience.  What better way to reach him but through his mobile phone.  In the Philippines, owning a mobile phone is a must.  It has transcended social classes.  One doesn’t have to be in the ABC bracket to own one.  It has been noted that people would prioritize the buying of prepaid cards than food. 

The mobile phone is really convenient as it can be put in one’s pocket or bag.  One just has to take it out of the bag or pocket when he needs it. 

Though the Philippines can boast that 75% of its population has a mobile phone,  smartphone owners comprise only 26% of the total though it has doubled from its 2009 figure. Nowadays, going online  using the mobile phone could prove to be expensive.  In 2020, that may not be the scenario.  Telcos will be offering different services to the consumer to be able to give value for its money. Convergence will pull down costs and subsequently make internet connection by mobile phone affordable.

Old Friends

One of my closest friends from high school, Este, recently came home for her annual vacation. Her two- week vacation is spent visiting relatives, reuniting with friends and hieing off to any of the different beautiful spots in the country. This year she and her family went to Panglao, Bohol. Last year it was El Nido, Palawan.

On her first week here in Manila, she met with three of her former classmates, Tess, Nanette and yours truly. We treated her to a sumptuous lunch at Fely J's. Everybody was unanimous in ordering sinigang na bangus belly sa bayabas. It was a hit and I think I will never tire eating it even if I will have it everyday. For our coffee and dessert fix, we went to Cafe Breton. Since everybody likes mango, we ordered a mango crepe with chocolate syrup. It was a perfect match to our coffee. Our day didn't end there, though. Este invited us to where she and her family were staying while here in Manila. Before heading to Este's place, we had pictures taken of our little outing in Makati.

At Este's place, we talked of a lot of things like children, house chores, maids, cooking and menopause. That last word puts a bitter taste to the mouth. Lol. Oh by the way the red wine that Este served us was so good even if our pulutan was bibingka. Well who cares if the pulutan was not perfect for the very good red wine. We all had a good time just being together.