Play Like a PRO: OhMyV33nus on being an LGBTQ+ pro player in esport

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Esports has become a significant part of the culture of today’s Filipino youth, with games spanning generations like Counter-Strike and Defense of the Ancient (DotA) and today’s wide variety of locally-popular games like League of Legends (LoL), Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB), and Valorant.

 

More recently, homegrown athletes started to dominate their respective esports leagues. Among such athletes is top MLBB player Jonmar “OhMyV33nus” Villaluna. Playing for Blacklist International, OhMyV33nus went against all odds to become one of the most successful Filipino esports players today.

 

Like most esports athletes, OhMyV33nus’ love for the sport started when she was still a kid. Growing up on PC games, with a particular interest in MMORPG and MOBA, OhMyV33nus decided early to become a part of the local esports community.

 

“Since I was a child, my dream has always been as simple as playing for a team,” OhMyV33nus shared. “Before, I just used to watch a lot of League of Legends international tournaments.  Watching their struggles and winning moments motivated me to become who I am today and inspired me long before esports became popular in the Philippines,” she added.

 

With her own share of struggles and heartbreaks, OhMyV33nus admits that it has not been an easy journey. She was a product of a decade of wins and losses — and after winning the MLBB M3 World Championships as the mid laner of her team, OhMyV33nus is now an international esports champion. With this success, OhMyV33nus serves as an inspiration for a new generation of Filipino gamers — particularly those who are members of the LGBTQ+ community.

To all aspiring LGBTQ+ esports players, OhMyV33nus shares this piece of advice, “Becoming a professional esports athlete requires intense physical and mental preparations and this sport transcends all those defining factors that we normally see in other sports — height, race, social status, and sexuality is irrelevant in this field. Don’t let anyone look down on you just because of your gender or sexuality.”

WATCH THE PLAY LIKE A PRO VIDEO HERE

Be the Next PRO Player with Home Credit
To those planning to start their own esports journey, having the gaming gear of your dreams could be the very first step. Home Credit Philippines (HCPH), the country’s leading buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider and the official partner of SIBOL, the Philippines’ national esports team to the 2022 SEA Games, hopes to inspire more Filipino youth to take this first step towards realizing their esports dreams.

 

With affordable monthly installments and a wide range of brands to choose from like Samsung, vivo, realme, OPPO, Huawei, and ASUS, Home Credit allows any aspiring esports player to purchase and equip themselves with the best device for their gaming goals. Home Credit also makes its services more accessible to gaming through top gadget stores like MemoXpress, Cell Zone, TechBox, and Silicon Valley as its retail partners.

 

Regardless if you're an aspiring gamer looking to start an arsenal or an established pro who wants to grab every competitive edge, Home Credit has got you covered!

 

Learn the latest updates from Home Credit Philippines by visiting their official website www.homecredit.ph. You may also follow them on their official Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok accounts. Customers are encouraged to download the My Home Credit app on Google Play to learn more about the latest promos and see what’s new in the Marketplace.

Pexels updates search algorithm to increase visibility for LGBTQ+ community

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Pexels’ algorithm update gives LGBTQ+ couples equal presence, another step in strengthening its overall quest to improve representation for marginalized communities

Pexels shows photos of families with straight couples, same sex couples, and interracial couples when you search for the term ‘family’

Pexels, the multimedia library dedicated to sharing diverse, free stock photos and videos, announced that it has made a major update to its algorithm to increase visibility of content that celebrates the LGBTQ+ community. This announcement follows Pexels’ previous partnership with Nappy in March of 2018 to highlight photos representative of diverse cultures and races. A company that values inclusivity at its core, Pexels has been on a mission to improve its search results to provide more well-rounded offerings since it launched in 2014 and was later acquired by Canva in 2018. Now, in light of Pride month, Pexels is permanently adjusting its algorithm for all relationship-based search keywords to deliver more diversity across genders and sexualities, giving presence to all types of relationships.

Searching for the term ‘couple’ on Pexels returns images representing all races, genders and identities

Pexels sets itself apart from its competitors with its artful, high-quality and curated library that offers over two million photos and videos for free. Additionally, Pexels’ library is the first truly inclusive collection focused on diversity across cultures, ethnicities and genders. While other stock photo sites do have images to reflect diversity, these do not naturally surface in the search results.

To find these photos, users must use search terms that clearly indicate whether they want a photo of a straight or a same-sex couple. Pexels’ algorithm update is focused on inclusivity and prioritizing LGBTQ+ imagery, democratizing all images, not requiring a user to delineate between same sex or other descriptors. Search terms like ‘couple’ or ‘holding hands,’ that typically only return images of heterosexual couples, now yield photos representing all races, genders and identities, increasing visibility and encouraging mainstream use. In a space that is crowded with cisgender, heteronormative, and white-washed content, Pexels continues be a pioneer in supporting underrepresented communities. The company hopes to empower its own community to tell better stories and inspire other stock photo sites to do the same.

“As one of the premier free photo and video libraries, we understand the power a photo or video can have,” said Monica Silvestre, Head of Community at Pexels. “Media has the power to make or break ideologies, challenge the status quo and humanize experiences. Images fuel stories and create movements, and it’s our responsibility as a global platform to act as a force for good; a force that helps power progress. This is why we’re improving our learning algorithm. The next time someone searches for “couple” or “love” they will find refreshing content that reflects life as it really is around us—straight couples, same sex couples, interracial couples, non-binary folks and more.”

In addition to the algorithm update, Pexels has amped up its efforts to partner with creators and companies that prioritize images and videos that challenge relationship norms and offer LGBTQ+ perspectives. The team will continue to adjust how its algorithm learns, making it intentionally calculate equal representation in order to offer its users choices they might not have previously considered. Pexels also employs a team of curators to specifically view, tag and boost submitted images to ensure the highest level of diversity and equality across the platform. Pexels encourages all photographers and creators to upload their LGBTQ+ photography to the platform. 

For more information about Pexels, please visit pexels.com.

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ABOUT PEXELS

Launched in 2014 and acquired by Canva in 2018, Pexels is a free to use photo and video library powered by a community of photographers. Its beautiful library of images and videos is donated by a global community of talented contributors who upload their work for everyone to use freely, helping millions of creators around the world develop beautiful products and designs. Pexels believes in diversity as a force for good and creative innovation. The team of over 30 people worldwide celebrates strength in different cultures, beliefs, and backgrounds and embraces its community of imaginative photographers.

ABOUT CANVA

Launched in 2013, Canva is an intuitive online design and publishing platform with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere. Featuring a simple drag-and-drop user interface and a vast library of templates ranging from presentations, social media posts, posters, invitations to resumes, a huge collection of stock photography, illustrations and fonts, anyone can take an idea and create something beautiful. Canva is available on web, iOS and Android.

Google Philippines to hold Pride Conversations online event on YouTube to honor the LGBTQ+ community

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MANILA, Philippines--As part of the concluding celebration of Pride Month, Google will hold an online event called “Pride Conversations” to create a discussion and champion some of today’s inspiring members of the Filipino LGBTQ+ community. This will be streamed live on Google Philippines YouTube channel on June 30, 2020 at 5:00PM. 

The speakers of the event continue to bring pride to the LGBTQ+ community through their achievements in their respective fields. Taking part in the discussion are Antipolo City Barangay Councilor Kristine Ibardolaza; Plastic, Reconstructive, and Aesthetic Surgery Fellow Dr. Berry Beriña; motorcycle enthusiast and vlogger Gaki Azurin, more popularly known as “GakiMoto”; comedian, host, and YouTube creator Mikey Bustos; and Google Philippines Program Manager Melai Lopez. 

“Google is committed to inclusion and this Pride month, we’re excited to share how we always support the LGBTQ+ community in a number of ways--from sustaining a diverse workplace culture, to providing grants, to hosting events around the world to continue the discussion on equality,” said Mervin Wenke, Communications and PR Head for Google Philippines. “We are glad to further show this commitment through our products like Google Maps which is helping enable a virtual Pride March initiative this year.” 

A home to LGBTQ+ employees

Google fosters a diverse and inclusive culture where LGBTQ+ employees are respected, celebrated, and empowered. The company ensures that they enjoy the same opportunity to shine, be heard, and succeed in the organization just as much as any other employee. Below are just some of the benefits for Google’s LGBTQ+ employees around the world including the Philippines:

• Same-sex health benefits: Google is committed to and provide same-sex health coverage for Googlers and their partners. 
• Employee assistance program: Google offers free emotional wellbeing support, 24/7, 365 days for Googlers and their dependents, as well as access to free expert information on legal, financial, and other topics. These services are confidential. 
• Parental leave: 
• A non-birth parent has at least 12 weeks of paid parental leave to spend with a new child (any parent who has a child born or adopted). 

• A ramp-back policy to help a non-birth parent transition back to work after a long leave is available. 

Googlers also have the freedom of establishing their preferred pronouns (he, she, xe, they) so colleagues will know how to best address a LGBTQ+ employee in the workplace to show inclusion and respect. 

“At Google, the use of preferred pronouns lives beyond work profiles and email signatures. Before a meeting begins, we may ask each other our preferred pronouns to address our colleagues accordingly and show respect. This demonstrates that LGBTQ+ employees are important and are always included in the discussion,” shares Melai Lopez, a trans woman and a Program Manager at Google Philippines.

Melai adds, “Google encourages us to form and participate in employee resource groups like Pride@Google. With this, I am able to use my voice to spark necessary conversations in the company and to contribute to the external LGBTQ+ community through high-impact programs and initiatives."

The “Pride Conversations” live event is part of Google’s initiatives for Pride Month, championing LGBTQ+ personalities whose stories serve as an inspiration for the community. Tune in on June 30, 2020 at 5:00 PM (Ph time) at Google Philippines YouTube channel.

About Google

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. Through products and platforms like Search, Maps, Gmail, Android, Google Play, Chrome and YouTube, Google plays a meaningful role in the daily lives of billions of people and has become one of the most widely-known companies in the world. Google is a subsidiary of Alphabet, Inc.