Jollibee, Shopee ads among most popular on YouTube in 2018

MANILA - Online shopping platform Shopee and fast-food chain Jollibee produced some of the top Philippine ads on YouTube in the second half of 2018, Google announced Thursday. 

The YouTube Ads Leaderboard showed Shopee getting the top spot for its viral video featuring Anne Curtis singing a catchy jingle to the tune of Baby Shark.

Shopee's Christmas ad featuring Jose Mari Chan, parodying the earlier Baby Shark ad, also landed at number 6.


Samsung's ad for its Galaxy J8 phone was number 2. It featured the popular Kapamilya loveteam of Enrique Gil and Liza Soberano. 


Safeguard's nearly 4-minute video "Pabaon" meanwhile told the story of Norman King, the first Aeta to graduate from the University of the Philippines. 


Jollibee's 9-minute video "One True Pair: Fight or Flight' was number 5 on the Leaderboard with 5 million views. The video tells a love story between a flight attendant and a one-time passenger. 


A 4-minute video, also by Jollibee, landed at 8. Titled "Biyahe," the video tells the story of a boy and his grandfather who continues to drive a jeepney despite his old age. 

Google said the themes that stood out among the top ads are: 

1) entertaining music and dance videos as seen in the Shopee ads; 

2) creative storytelling as seen in the ads of Jollibee and Safeguard; 

3) celebrities for brands as shown in Samsung's ad using the LizQuen loveteam, and in KZ Tandingan's ad for Coke. 


“The range of topics, styles, and lengths of ads in the leaderboard show that YouTube is a space where all brands can both find their voice and an audience for their message,” said Gabby Roxas, country marketing manager of Google Philippines. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Coke eyeing cannabis-infused drink market

The Coca-Cola Company said on Monday it was closely watching the growing marijuana-infused drinks market, responding to a media report that the world’s largest beverage maker was in talks with Canada’s Aurora Cannabis Inc.

The discussions over a possible product tie-up, reported by Canadian financial channel BNN Bloomberg, could open a new front in Coke’s battle to overcome sluggish demand for its sugar-heavy sodas by diversifying into coffee and health-focused drinks.

The report said there was no guarantee that talks between the companies would be successful but Aurora shares responded by soaring 22 percent. Coke stock gained slightly on a New York market weakened by concerns over trade tariffs.

The marijuana industry has been attracting interest from a handful of big corporate names as Canada and a wave of US states move to legalize recreational use of the drug.

However, US corporations are still cautious about taking steps into a business that remains illegal under US federal law.

Both Coke and Aurora, in separate statements, said they were interested in cannabidiol infused beverages but could not comment on any market speculation.

Coke and Aurora would likely develop beverages that will ease inflammation, pain and cramping, the BNN report said, citing sources familiar with the matter

A partnership between Coke and Aurora would mark the first entry of a major manufacturer of non-alcoholic beverages into the market for cannabis-related products, up till now a hunting ground almost solely for the alcohol industry.

Corona maker Constellation Brands is plowing more than $4 billion into marijuana producer Canopy Growth to make cannabis based products, while Molson Coors Brewing Co’s (TAP.N) Canadian arm has said it will make cannabis-infused drinks with Hydropothecary Corp.

The size of the Constellation investment, announced a month ago, sparked speculation of other buy outs, investments and partnerships in the industry, pushing Canadian marijuana stocks higher.

“We continue to expect to see more deals between Canadian cannabis companies and the larger players in the global alcohol market who have yet to gain exposure to the category,” Cowen analyst Vivien Azer said.

Azer said he would not be surprised by a similar move from Pepsi with “with CBD seemingly a good compliment to their market share leading Gatorade franchise”.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

LOOK: Coke's newest sugar-free, low-sugar drinks

TOLUCA, Mexico - Softdrink lovers in North America now have more choices for their sweet fix, without sugar, one of the causes of diabetes.

Coca-Cola Sin Azucar, which literally translates to "no sugar" was launched in this North American country where Coca-Cola FEMSA runs one of its largest manufacturing plants.

The Sin Azucar can looks like a regular Coke can, except for the slim black band around the top lid and a similarly colored tab.

It replaced sugar-free Coke Zero here, and was formulated to taste very much like the regular variant, said Coca-Cola FEMSA corporate communications manager Juan Carlos Cortes.

"Every place is different. We improve the formula," Cortes said, adding the proportions of ingredients for Coke Sin Azucar were different from Coke Zero.

Coke variants are made from water, simple syrup made from water and sugar, sugar substitute or artificial sweeteners, and a secret blend from the company that gives the product its unique taste.

"If you make a switch in one of those products, you need to make sure the brand is going to get accepted," Cortes said.

"So you don't go through the new Coke kind of thing that we saw in the 80s," he said, referring to a reformulation that wasn't received well by some consumers.

In the neighboring US, Coke also launched the 90-calorie Coke Life, which is sweetened using a blend of Sugar and Stevia.


There was no immediate plan to bring Coke Sin Azucar or Coke Life to the Philippines, where sugar-free options include Coke Zero and Coke Light, Cortes said.

"It's a difficult decision to make because the bottlers and the Coca-Cola Company have to get together and determine what they're going to bring in," he said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Regulators clear Coke, Pepsi of cancer link

US regulators said soft drinks from PepsiCo Inc and Coca-Cola Co posed no cancer risk, contrary to a watchdog group that reported several popular brands contain high levels of a chemical linked to cancer in animals.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) said it found unsafe levels of a chemical used to make caramel color in cans of Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc's Dr. Pepper, and Whole Foods' 365 Cola.

The group asked the Food and Drug Administration to ban caramel coloring agents that contain the chemical known as 4-methylimidazole, or 4-MI. This follows a similar plea last year.

"Coke and Pepsi, with the acquiescence of the FDA, are needlessly exposing millions of Americans to a chemical that causes cancer," said CSPI executive director Michael Jacobson. "If companies can make brown food coloring that is carcinogen-free, the industry should use that."

The FDA said it is reviewing the group's petition, but that the drinks were still safe.

"A consumer would have to consume well over a thousand cans of soda a day to reach the doses administered in the studies that have shown links to cancer in rodents," said Doug Karas, an FDA spokesman, in a statement.

The cans were all taken from stores in the Washington, DC area, and some had levels of 4-MI near 140 micrograms in each 12-ounce can, the watchdog group said. The state of California has a legal limit of 29 micrograms of 4-MI, it added.

However, the group said a bigger health risk came from high-fructose corn syrup, which is used to sweeten soda and can contribute to diabetes.

The FDA's limit for 4-MI in caramel coloring is 250 parts per million (ppm). That caramel would then be diluted when it is put in soda. The highest levels of 4-MI found by CSPI were about 0.4 ppm, according to Reuters calculations.

"This is nothing more than CSPI scare tactics," the American Beverage Association said in a statement. "In fact, findings of regulatory agencies worldwide ... consider caramel coloring safe for use in foods and beverages."

source: interaksyon.com