Yahoo! to launch Internet café program to grow RP community

Yahoo! to launch Internet café program to grow RP community


By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net


MAKATI CITY, Philippines -- Yahoo! Southeast Asia will launch a program for Internet café businesses in the Philippines to grow its community in the country, an executive told reporters Tuesday.

The Yahoo! program for Internet cafés aims to boost the Internet company's effort to build an "ecosystem" of users in the country, according to Jojo Añonuevo, head of Yahoo! business development of Southeast Asia, in an interview with reporters.

Añonuevo said that Yahoo! Southeast Asia will deploy a group of so-called Yahoo! Ambassadors that will encourage more Filipino users to join its community.

"You can't have advertising if you don't have a large community of users," the executive said, when asked how this strategy would figure in Yahoo! Southeast Asia's business.

There are now 12 to 15 million Filipinos living in the Philippines using Yahoo!'s services, said Jason Coates, Yahoo! Southeast Asia regional communications manager.

Noting that there remains a largely untapped market in the Philippines, Añonuevo stressed that Yahoo! is bent on going "toward more localization" of its services.

Yahoo! Southeast Asia announced recently in one online job portal that it was looking for an online community manager for the Philippines.

Coates said hiring a community manager for the Philippines is part of a global effort to bring more "relevant content" to Yahoo! Philippines portal, which was launched two years ago.

The executive said the online community manager will serve as an intermediary who is expected to be the eyes and ears of Yahoo! in the local community.

"With the Internet becoming social, it's the community that's going to drive it," he added, noting that several online community managers will be hired.

Meanwhile, Añonuevo revealed that there are close to a dozen Filipinos working for Yahoo! Southeast Asia.

Regulasyon sa Internet café, pinahihigpitan ng mga mambabatas

NANAWAGAN kahapon mga kongresista sa kinauukulan na magtakda ng mahigpit na regulasyon sa lumalawak na Internet café dahil sa sandamakmak na marahas na “on-line games” na hindi nakakatulong sa edukasyon at hindi malayong lumikha ng “war-freak” na mga Pilipino sa hinaharap.

Bagama’t magandang senyales sa negosyo, dismayado naman sina Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, incoming An Waray Rep. Florencio “Bem” Noel at Taguig-Pateros Rep. Lani Cayetano dahil pawang mga bata na naglalaro ng mararahas na games ang madalas na parokyano sa Internet cafés.

Sinabi ni Romualdez na dapat magtakda ang iba't ibang lungsod at munisipyo ng kondisyon na magpapatupad ang Internet cafe operators ng curfew sa kanilang minors na kliyente bago pagkalooban ng business permit.

“There should be a limit in the operations of Internet cafés because precious times for studies are being wasted,” ani Romualdez na nagsabing hindi nakakatulong sa paghubog ng mga responsableng bata ang mararahas na computer at video games.

Naniniwala si Noel na humuhubog ang bayolenteng computer at video games ng mga kabataang utak-pulbura kaya naman maraming minors ang nasasangkot na sa mga krimen.

“Soon we will be producing adults who are war freaks and utak-pulbura who will approach their daily problems with the mindset of a warrior or a terminator,” ani Noel.

Nalaman naman kay Cayetano na sandamakmak na reklamo ang natanggap ng kanyang tanggapan dahil sa pinapabayaang Internet café kung saan nagiging adik ang mga batang dapat sana ay mga nag-aaral ng kanilang aralin.

Inihayag ni Cayetano na kadalasang inerereklamo ng mga magulang ang pagka-ubos ng baon ng kanilang mga anak sa pagrenta ng mga bayolenteng games.

“Young Internet café users have been practically spending their ‘baon’ and their whole day inside Internet cafes harnessing their talents in killing off their enemies,” ani Cayetano. Ryan Ponce Pacpaco - Journal online