GCash unlocks exclusive deals and digital convenience for Bacolod’s MassKara Festival 2026

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Enjoy the Masskara festivities, and discover exclusive GCash promos from October 16-18, 2026!

Bacolod City once again comes alive with the sights, sounds, and festive spirit of MassKara Festival as GCash joins locals and visitors in one of the city’s most anticipated celebrations. From October 16 to 18, 2026, festival‑goers can discover exclusive merchant offers, alongside activities and surprises across key areas of the festival.

Beyond the parades, music, and colorful festivities, MassKara brings together communities, consumers, and local businesses. As digital payments become increasingly part of everyday transactions, GCash is making it easier for festival-goers to pay, explore local merchants, and enjoy more of what Bacolod has to offer. Through merchant partnerships and activities across key areas, GCash hopes to give more reasons to explore and celebrate MassKara.

Unlocking exclusive GCash deals & promos at Masskara

Festival-goers can enjoy exclusive deals from participating merchants when they pay with GCash. These offers give visitors more ways to discover local businesses while getting added value from purchases made throughout the celebration.

Activities will also take place across Lacson Street and the Public Plaza, where festival programs will run from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. Visitors can look forward to freebies, surprises, and other experiences throughout the festivities, including the MassKara Crawl, which encourages customers to explore participating merchants along the way.

“MassKara is deeply rooted in the community, and the festival experience is shaped by the many people and businesses that make it come alive. By being present in areas where people gather, we make digital payments and merchant offers part of a more convenient and enjoyable experience for locals and visitors alike,” said Maria Tania Padilla, VP and Regional Business Unit.

A festival itinerary will also give visitors a preview of activities and offers they can discover, making it easier to plan their time and experience more of MassKara.

Bringing digital convenience into the celebration

Festivals bring people together to eat, shop, explore, and celebrate, creating opportunities for local businesses to connect with more customers. For participating merchants, the MassKara festivities provide another way to engage with consumers during one of Bacolod’s busiest celebrations, while festival-goers can discover new experiences and local favorites throughout the city.

As Bacolod celebrates MassKara Festival, GCash brings residents and tourists more ways to enjoy the festivities with exciting offers, exclusive deals, and freebies.

Here’s how you can join the fun with GCash:

• Arriving at Bacolod-Silay Airport or BREDCO Port? Download and register for the GCash app, then buy load to enjoy freebies.

• Visit MassKara bazaars at Masskanameats and Merkado Lacson to get freebies

• Explore the MassKara crawl and participating partner merchants for exclusive promos

• Drop by GCash booths at Lacson Street Public Plaza and Megaworld for more festival activities

• Get your GCash Visa Card at 888 Chinatown Square.

For Bacolodnons, these activities enrich a celebration that has long been part of the city’s identity. By bringing offers and experiences closer to where people gather, GCash helps festival‑goers make the most of MassKara while giving local businesses greater opportunities to connect with the community.

For more information, please visit www.gcash.com.

Final Call, Changemakers: Join Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2026 Before November 2

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Submit your proposal by November 2 and take the step towards building a better future for your community!

As the submission deadline draws closer, the search for the Philippines’ top Changemakers through Samsung Philippines Solve for Tomorrow 2026 enters its final stretch. The nationwide innovation competition calls on students to address local challenges and help shape a better future for their communities.

With nearly ₱2 million worth of prizes at stake, Samsung Philippines Solve for Tomorrow continues to inspire Filipino youth to use science, technology, and creativity to make a meaningful difference in their communities, even at a young age.

The challenge remains open to all Grades 8 to 10 students enrolled in government-managed science high schools across the country. Each team can have up to four (4) members, guided by one (1) teacher adviser. Together, they are encouraged to explore the issues closest to their hearts, whether championing environmental sustainability, driving social change through sports and technology, or tackling local challenges with the help of artificial intelligence, to create solutions that can make a lasting impact.

Entries must be submitted on or before 02 November, 2026, marking the last chance to be among this year’s Changemakers driving positive change.

Alongside a meaningful learning experience throughout their journey, the top teams will also receive exciting prizes. The grand champion will receive ₱400,000 worth of Samsung devices for their school, along with ₱200,000 worth of gadgets for the team and adviser. They will also take home ₱100,000 in cash, with an additional ₱30,000 for the teacher-adviser.

The second-place winner will receive ₱300,000 worth of Samsung devices for their school, ₱200,000 worth of gadgets for the team, ₱70,000 in cash for the members, and ₱25,000 for their adviser. The third-place winner will bring home ₱175,000 worth of Samsung devices for their school, ₱200,000 worth of gadgets for the team, ₱50,000 in cash for the members, and ₱15,000 for their adviser.

The rest of the Top 10 finalists will not leave empty-handed as each team will be awarded ₱15,000 in cash, while their dedicated teacher-advisers will receive ₱5,000 each in recognition of their guidance and support throughout the competition.

A Generation of Changemakers

Last year, Solve for Tomorrow celebrated the winning teams from Cavite Science Integrated School: Team MaHeMo for its solar-powered buoy that monitors mangrove health and Team EGGNovation for its automated egg-sorting system. Meanwhile, Team BANTALAY of Tuguegarao City Science High School proposed a solar-powered pest trap to support more sustainable farming. Together, these students showed how ideas rooted in community needs can inspire meaningful change, paving the way for this year’s aspiring changemakers to share their own ideas for a better tomorrow.

Now in its fourth year in the Philippines, Samsung Solve for Tomorrow continues to encourage young minds to apply science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to develop innovative solutions to real-world challenges.

Don’t miss your shot to bring about change! Take your ideas further, make a difference, and compete for exciting prizes through Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2026! Interested participants can learn more about the program and submit their entries by visiting www.samsung.com/ph/solve-for-tomorrow or following Samsung Philippines on social media via Facebook (facebook.com/SamsungPH), X (x.com/SamsungPH), and Instagram (instagram.com/samsungph).

DTI Fair Trade Permit No. FTEB-267269 Series of 2026

GrabCar Group Ride now splits the fare automatically, with savings of up to 50% per passenger

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New “GrabCar 3-in-1” campaign revives the 2000s shampoo sachet jingle to show that riding together is the more sulit choice

Riding home with friends just got easier and much more affordable. Grab Philippines has upgraded GrabCar Group Ride so the fare can now be split automatically among passengers, with each rider saving up to 50 percent compared with booking a solo ride.

GrabCar Group Ride lets the ride host and up to two friends share one GrabCar, with up to three drop-off points along the way. The more people join, the more affordable the ride becomes for everyone, and the app shows each person’s share upfront. No more awkward “magkano share ko?” after the trip.

Regular ride buddies can also be saved as a group, together with frequent pickup and drop-off pins, so repeat bookings take just a few taps. It’s ideal for officemates heading the same way after work or friends coming home from a night out.

A throwback to the shampoo sachet jingle era

To spotlight the upgrade, Grab released an online video that taps into Filipinos’ nostalgia for the catchy shampoo jingles of the 2000s, while educating commuters on how easy it is to book a GrabCar Group Ride. The campaign repackages mobility feature as the “GrabCar 3-in-1”: three passengers, one booking – the same promise that made the 3-in-1 sachet a household staple.

The idea is simple. Just like the sachet, sharing a ride with your barkada gives you more for less, both in savings and in the company on the way home.

“Filipino commuters are resourceful. They’re always finding smarter ways to make every trip with friends or colleagues more efficient and more affordable. As a committed partner to every commuter, Grab makes sure our platform keeps up with these everyday habits. ‘Hati-hati’ has always been part of how we move together, and it’s about more than splitting costs. It’s about looking out for one another. With GrabCar Group Ride, we’re building on that spirit so that getting around together becomes the easier, more attainable choice for more Filipinos,” said Grab Philippines Country Marketing Head Bea Bravo.

How to book a Group Ride

• Open the Grab app, tap GrabCar, then select Group Ride.
• Enter your pickup point and drop-off.
• Share the invite link with up to two friends.
• Your friends add their own drop-off points.
• Confirm the booking. The fare is split automatically, with each rider saving up to 50 percent

The Group Ride feature is now available in all GrabCar cities nationwide.

Filipino chef behind Dubai chocolate phenomenon teams up with Jollibee for Christmas

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Jollibee is partnering with Filipino pastry chef and culinary innovator Nouel Catis, whose work is associated with the global Dubai chocolate phenomenon, to introduce the Pistachio Choco Sundae, a limited-edition Christmas dessert that brings a globally popular flavor combination to a familiar Filipino favorite.

“Christmas is a time when people look forward to experiences that make the season more special. At Jollibee, we want to bring that joy through both the food our customers love and new flavors that surprise and delight them,” said Dorothy Ching, vice president for marketing of Jollibee Philippines. "Partnering with Chef Nouel gives us a chance to offer something new this Christmas while celebrating Filipino culinary talent on the global stage."

Based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Catis is recognized for his work in the chocolate confectionery space, particularly the Dubai chocolate phenomenon that helped popularize the combination of chocolate and pistachio flavors among consumers worldwide.

His work has also received recognition, including being named an Emerging Global Filipino Icon by The Global Filipino Magazine and receiving a Service Excellence Award in Culinary Innovation in Dubai.

“We see Chef Nouel as a partner in our mission to bring joy to Filipinos and people around the world through food. By bringing his culinary expertise together with a Jollibee favorite, we hope to give our customers a new way to enjoy flavors they love and discover something different this Christmas,” Ching added.

For Catis, the collaboration is also a personal milestone, bringing him together with a brand he has loved since childhood.

“I was so happy when Jollibee reached out to me. I grew up loving Jollibee, so I never imagined that one day, I’d get to work with a brand that’s been part of my childhood. After the Dubai chocolate experience, it’s exciting to be doing something like this with Jollibee, especially for Christmas,” said Catis. “As a Filipino, it makes me proud to be part of something that can bring joy to people here at home and hopefully introduce more people around the world to the creativity and talent of Filipinos.”

The collaboration brings Catis’s culinary expertise to Jollibee’s annual Christmas sundae offering. The Pistachio Choco Sundae features creamy vanilla soft serve coated in a pistachio shell, topped with chocolate syrup and diced pistachios.

Priced at ₱79, the dessert will be available nationwide from October 16 to December 31 through Jollibee dine-in, takeout, drive-thru and delivery via GrabFood and foodpanda.

The partnership reflects Jollibee’s continuing effort to create new food experiences for customers during the holiday season, combining familiar favorites with fresh flavors while celebrating Filipino talent whose work has reached international audiences.

Craving more Jollibee treats and exclusives? Head to www.jollibee.com.ph for the latest updates, order your favorites via GrabFood and foodpanda, and follow us on social media for more JOYful surprises.

OriginOS 7 rollout for vivo phones set to begin in October

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vivo is preparing to roll out OriginOS 7 to 19 smartphone models in the Philippines, with the first batch scheduled for October 2026 and succeeding batches planned through February 2027.

The phased rollout will cover selected X and V Series devices, bringing the operating system’s updated interface, performance optimizations, productivity tools, and connectivity features to eligible users.

The rollout is organized into six batches, with the schedule varying by model. The first batch includes the vivo X300 Pro, X300, X300 FE, X300 Ultra, and X Fold5. The X200 Series follows in November, while selected V Series models are scheduled for subsequent months.

OriginOS 7 introduces changes designed to address everyday smartphone use, including smoother system interactions, improved resource management, AI-assisted work tools and expanded connections with compatible devices. Features such as AI-assisted audio transcription, multitasking tools, and cross-device file sharing are intended to help users move between work, communication, and entertainment with fewer interruptions.

“An operating system update matters most when users can feel the difference in their everyday routines, whether they are switching between apps, organizing information from a meeting or moving files between devices. With OriginOS 7, we want to make these common tasks more intuitive while giving eligible users a clearer view of what to expect from the rollout,” said vivo Philippines Brand Marketing Director Liu Lu.

The scheduled release months for the 19 models are listed below. Availability and timing may vary by device, and users should check official vivo Philippines announcements for confirmation of the update on their specific model.

Batch	vivo Model	Scheduled Release
1	X300 Pro, X300, X300 FE, and X Fold5	End of October 2026
2	X200 Pro, X200, and X200 FE	Mid-November 2026
3	V70, V70 FE, and V60	Mid-December 2026
4	V50	End of December 2026
5	V80 Lite, V60 Lite, V50 Lite, and V40	End of January 2027
6	V30 Pro, V30, and V30e	End of February 2027

The rollout schedule is planned and subject to confirmation. A model’s inclusion does not guarantee that the update will be available on the first day of its scheduled month. Users should follow vivo Philippines on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X, or visit the vivo website for final availability announcements and device-specific instructions.