“Happy to be Home!”
Celebrity mom, host, actress, jet-setter and social media
darling Ms. Kris Aquino proudly declared when she joined the family of the country’s leading residential digital services provider PLDT Home and fastest mobile LTE network Smart during her launch as brand ambassador.
Kris joins an A-list roster of PLDT Home celebrity ambassadors including Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach, celebrity moms Camille Prats with husband and son, Bettina Carlos, celebrity family Isabel and John Prats with daughter Feather, and Smart’s celebrity ambassadors Maine Mendoza and Alden Richards, James Reid and Nadine Lustre, Vic Sotto, Maja Salvador and Matteo Guidicelli.
Vic with pregnant wife Pauline Luna-Sotto, Pia, Camille and Isabel and John joined invited guests at the High Street Lounge of Shangri-La at the Fort Manila before Kris’ star-studded introduction. It turned out that Kris, who wore an all-red stretch gown, waited for her turn to be introduced at the lobby as the event did not have a waiting area.
Vic says: "I'm glad and honored that I'm part of the Sun family because I play Candy Crush, lol. I use data, and this relaunch means it's not just voice calls and texting, but means a lot of people will be using data. I lurk in Instagram — even if I don't post, I see people. Congratulations to PLDT and Smart. Again, I'm glad to be part of the Sun family."
Hosted by Marc Nelson, the high-profile launch featured Jericho Rosales, Franco Laurel, Tweetie de Leon, Maxine Medina and Jennifer Hammond along with tri-media. PLDT-Smart big boss Manny V. Pangilinan was unable to grace the special event. Even if she is among MVP’s close friends, the queen was not accorded special privilege.
This gave Kris the chance to invite Marc to her new house so he could experience its unbelievable Wi-Fi connection. Kris laughed this off as an excuse for Marc to teach her how to swim. He accepted!
PLDT executives then explained, "We started fiber in a few key cities and municipalities; now, even far-flung areas (have it). The premier villages have it, this will enable our consumers to have the digital lifestyle. We have condo units that don't have this yet, but we're moving, and we have people experience Fibr and stay happy about it. In BGC (Bonifacio Global City), we have mostly all residential buildings now Fibr-ready, so if you live here, you're lucky!
“You should all be on PLDT Home tomorrow; also be connected with our streaming sites tonight. Roku is also now available, so there's no reason why you're not enjoying our services. We want all our 2 million homes to transfer from DSL to Fibr because there's a Lot to enjoy from this faster connection," they added.
The Queen of All Media joined PLDT Home’s growing roster of celebrity brand ambassadors, particularly for its SmartHome suite of products and services. Kris’ (online) presence is expected to reach unprecedented heights as a special edition of her famous video blog “The Kris List” takes centerstage in this partnership.
Kris told us about how she maintains a smart home and utilizes PLDT Home Fibr and LTE when she's mobile, saying, "Let's all admit it, traffic is terrible. I checked who is watching me and most of them are millennials and they watch me through phones. Connections have improved so much and they watch me through mobile these days and LTE doesn't buffer on me.
“I also love the roaming charges because it's P499 a day. The other network charges more, so you see why they got me? “ she laughed. “We need to be connected. Thank you to PLDT and Smart for making us all connected. You are the first company to invest in iFlix so I'm going there, too. PLDT is an innovator, we have to give them that!"
On the other hand, Smart will enable “Digital Kris” to navigate her lifestyle, businesses, social media and the fast-changing digital landscape powered by Smart’s LTE, named fastest by wireless research coverage firm OpenSignal.
According to Kris, PLDT’s integrated Home technology is a perfect match for her own lifestyle, as she raises two digitally savvy sons and expands her personal brand into the realm of digital media.
“This is super exciting for me because PLDT is really a big part of our home and our family, so to be officially an ambassador is a huge honor,” she says. “I can’t wait to share my own stories about how technology affects the way I raise my children and the way we communicate. I always want the best for my family and being with PLDT is definitely one of those decisions.”
When it comes to allowing her followers an intimate look at her travels, live blogs and online contents, Kris will rely on Smart.
“Everything now is digital. You know how watching TV has shifted over to binge-watching in gadgets? That’s the same pivot I see for my digital needs. With Smart’s reliable LTE speed, I know that reaching a broader audience, particularly the millennials, is now a lot easier.”
Kris hosts and produces several online video series on her official Facebook page including Wear Kris for fashion tips, “The Kris List” for her personal list of new experiences and conversations with people, “Heart to Heart with Kris” for a glimpse into her daily activities and adventures, and “”Kris Travels” for fans who want to virtually join her as she travels the world with her loved ones.
The doting mother of Josh and Bimby has always been cautious about her kids’ safety. She is very happy that PLDT Home is on the same mindset as she is in this promoting home security products for Filipino families such as the home monitoring system Fam Cam, the cyber security platform Fam Zone, and the multi-functional kiddie gadget Smart Watch.
Kris is a perfect fit for PLDT Home’s world-class entertainment content and platforms including the game-changing all-in-one entertainment box — the Roku PoweredTM TVolution which offers over 100 streaming channels including Cignal TV, Netflix, iflix, and YouTube.
With powerful connection from PLDT Home Fibr, all these content options can be enjoyed on high-definition lag-free and without pixilation. Fibr subscribers, like Kris, can also now sign up for the country’s first-ever Whole Home Wi-Fi service — the Philippines’ first personalized solution designed to connect the entire house to an all-in-one broadband and smart Wi-Fi network.
“We’re honored to have Kris as part of the PLDT family. I am confident that, together, we can really empower and inspire more Filipino families to build the strongest connections at home through world-class internet and technology,” PLDT-Smart FVP and Head of Consumer Business for Market Development Oscar Reyes Jr. adds.
"We're happy that Open Signal has already released the report has increased its edge of LTE Coverage nationwide. We have 6 percents advantage over our competitors and I think it's a big thing to enable our subscribers and educate them about this revolution to tell them about LTE. For us to bring Filipinos to the digital era, we need to upgrade them to a 4G device, to make sure their sim cards support it, in Smart, Sun Cellular and T‘NT, we have all these offers that people can now enjoy. This way, more people can enjoy it now,” Head of Wireless Consumer Division for Smart Alex Caeg says.
Follow PLDT Home and Smart on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more updates.
FLAWLESS DECRIES ADDITIONAL BEAUTY TAX. Flawless has publicly expressed its displeasure on Instagram about the current issue on taxes being proposed on all luxury beauty treatments and products.
They posted, “At Flawless, we see beauty as a powerful tool that helps people feel and function better as they go about their everyday lives. Highly taxing cosmetics and beauty service is unjust, unconstitutional, oppressive and discriminatory to hardworking Filipino consumers. As a Filipino brand that believes in bringing out the best in everyone, here’s our Flawless appeal. Give us a break and don’t tax my beauty.”
While clientele of cosmetic clinics span a wide bracket of income-earners, Flawless believes that the decision to be beautiful is a right and a privilege that shouldn’t be oppressed and its consumers should not be discriminated.
The bill is being pushed by Sen. Sonny Angara and is contained in Section 30 of Senate Bill 1592. It comes in the wake of the news that luxury cars will have additional taxes too, and its implementation starts next year.