New app brings audience closer to artists
THOSE who watched the concert of Coldplay at the Philippine Arena last January, were surely entertained with the British rock band in their second visit to the Philippines.
However, the traffic just to leave the venue unbelievably brought hours of ordeal to the audience.
“You spent a lot of money just to secure the tickets but it takes you five hours to get out of the event,” lamented Toffer Briones, managing director of Block Dojo Philippines.
“Some people were willing to pay additional P500 to ease their parking woes just to make their P5,000 tickets worth it,” added Toffer. “That’s what we do. We help bridge them to the right stakeholders in the industry.”
For Park King of Jynon Mapa, Block Dojo Philippines built the events app that is all about collaboration. “We tap the events places, organizers, concerts and parking management,” Jynon explained.
“Based on our research, in Makati alone, there is a lot of lost in revenue from not collected parking. We are trying to solve that. In my condominium, we started last month and we helped them collect almost three times than their usual collection. We are trying to avoid revenue lost because of non-collected parking.”
The idea came about in 2017 during the Coldplay concert at the Mall of Asia grounds.
“You wanted to book the best seat for the concert, but you cannot do that for your parking. You spend two hours just looking for parking. There’s no solution yet, even if Coldplay returned this year. Even celebrities missed the first part of the concert because of scarcity of parking.
“Our expertise at IoT (Internet of Things) is what sets us apart from other companies. There’s something that we’re looking at in the future. But of course, we’re focused on execution. We want to be the first to offer.”
Park King boasts of barriers with bolt which can be connected to the site through an app on your phone. “It’s weather proof and the barrier itself can withstand big trucks,” bragged Jynon.
At present, Park King is in talks with malls for possible slots for regular parking. They are also eyeing regular condominium units.
Block chain is a trend that is more useful rather than the gambling component that is neither right or wrong. “In terms of utility, we can now start to see the application of block chain to something that’s really starting to solve real problems,” said Toffer.
Launched in August last year, Block Dojo Philippines is still “ongoing” in terms of education, according to Toffer.
“Block chain has not reached the same level of success yet,” pointed out Topher. “You are probably still not using an app that is based on Block Chain yet. It’s getting there, but it will still take a bit of time to educate the market.
Block Dojo Philippines has, so far, invested in nine companies this year. “We started the first cohort in January 2024,” informed Toffer. “The next one was in May that finished on August 1. The third cohort will be in September. We are targeting six to eight more qualified ones.
“The challenge is sometimes is a lot more environmental and circumstantial. If we believe that if we can provide the right structured environment for founders, then we can empower more Filipino founders solving real world Filipino problems.
“That’s a vision. To create as many founders who can solve as many Filipino problems that can also global, so we can make a lot of money doing that. It’s win-win and we ca give the money back to the eco-system. That’s ideal.”
A global venture builder headquartered in the UK, Block Dojo recently marked its first year in the Philippines with a showcase of six, new cutting-edge startups during their demo day on August 1 at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM).
Since establishing its Philippine presence in August 2023, Block Dojo has been committed to nurturing startups by providing a rigorous 12-week incubation program designed to instill essential business skills.
The program centered on three key pillars: a customary curriculum of fundamental business topics ranging from finance, legal, marketing and operations; a bespoke facet that allows founders to discover how much further they can take their idea forward; and a community-centric approach. As a collective, we recognize that it takes a village to raise a startup in a short span of time.
“This is a celebration not just for the company but also celebrates how far we have come as a startup ecosystem in the Philippines,” said Toffer. “We wanted each of the startups to showcase their companies, which aim to solve fundamental problems that Filipinos face every day.”
The event drew notable government representatives, including general manager Antonilo Mauricio of the National Development Company, who delivered an inspiring keynote address.
The six featured startups, each with a unique and impactful vision, included Befit2gether, a phygital game designed to make fitness enjoyable and consistent through squad versus squad challenges.
Upraised is a matchmaking platform connecting owners and funders of curated real estate projects to transform properties into well-designed living spaces.
Pettopass is an interactive platform offering personalized pet care services based on pet data, enhancing the well-being of pets and their owners.
Willow is a coaching platform that supports individuals in achieving personal and professional growth.
Park King is mobile application for parking reservations that allows users to reserve a parking slot before an event. It is integrated with IoT to physically block each slot for users.
Certifyed is a blockchain-based credential verification solution aimed at eliminating fraud and enhancing trust through verifiable digital certificates and authenticated credentials.
Panelists included regional industry leaders: Jerahmeel Chen, chief innovation officer of National Development Company; Rene Cuartero, co-founder and CEO of AHG Lab; Lyra Reyes, head of marketing at Singapore-based e27;
Atty. Jocel Dilag, Adjunct professor at Asian Institute of Management (AIM) and chief innovator at Bughaw Creative Collective; and Stephanie Tower, country head at NChain Philippines.
Continuing its mission to empower startups, Block Dojo Philippines is currently recruiting for its third cohort. The application deadline is August 9. For more information and inquiries, visit blockdojo.io
