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What you need to know about the new Starbucks Rewards

Collect more stars with a few sips

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Out with the old, in with the new! Starbucks Philippines freshened up its existing Rewards program to make it even more delightful to its customers.

With the new Starbucks Rewards, you can get one star with every PhP 25 spent on everything you buy — food, beverages, merchandise — in stores using your registered card or app.

When you accumulate 100 stars, it will be converted to a reward voucher. You can then choose to redeem a reward befitting your taste: a handcrafted beverage, any pastry, or even a slice of cake!

More benefits await

Starbucks’ new Rewards program brims with exciting benefits that anyone can enjoy. For starters, there’s a Double Star Registration Treat where new members can collect two stars for every PhP 25 spent on all eligible purchases for the first seven days upon successful registration.

The Double Star Days benefit is also back, but it’s not limited to the frantic holiday season. Moreover, Starbucks will offer Bonus Stars so you can collect two stars on their featured and promotional drinks.

Lastly, the Free Birthday Reward is still here and you can now choose between redeeming a food from their bakery/cafe or a complimentary handcrafted beverage.

How to be a member

The new Rewards program is exclusive for registered members only, so you have to join if you want to enjoy this exciting loyalty program. All you need to do is activate and register a Starbucks Card to Starbucks Rewards.

For existing members of My Starbucks Rewards, simply update your old password and add a new Starbucks Card to your account through the website or the updated Starbucks app, which is available on Google Play Store and the App Store.

Unlike before, you can now enjoy cashless payments and new features like automatic reloading through the Starbucks app. No more lining up to load your Starbucks card!

Say goodbye to your old Starbucks cards

FYI! Your previous Starbucks cards will stop working after July 15, 2020. This is to pave the way to the new Starbucks cards linked to the new program.

If you have an existing balance of PhP 100 or more, you can have it transferred to a free, new card. If it’s less than PhP 100, you can get a cash refund. Simply present your cards or your account on your mobile app to display the remaining balance.

The new Starbucks Rewards and Starbucks cards will be available starting July 17, 2020.

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New X users must pay a dollar per year to post and reply

Rolling out globally now

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New users on X might soon face a tough time on the platform. The social media website will likely start charging new accounts a small fee for the right to post on the platform.

Now, the fee isn’t a new one. Almost six months ago, the company tested the paid system in New Zealand and the Philippines. New users in those countries had to pay a dollar per year for the ability to post and reply to content.

As spotted by X Daily News on the same platform, the company might be ready to take the experiment to a larger market. New text strings have shown that the policy is rolling out worldwide.

The policy is designed to combat a wave of bots appearing on the platform. By preventing new accounts from creating posts, X hopes to stave off the standard behavior of bots these days. You might have noticed them as OnlyFans creators in unrelated posts, peddling NSFW content on their bio.

Though the global rollout was only just spotted, owner Elon Musk has seemingly confirmed the change. Replying to X Daily News, Musk says that it is “the only way to curb the relentless onslaught of bots.” He says that the current breed of bots can easily bypass simple checks these days.

SEE ALSO: X will no longer let you hide your blue checkmark

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Disney+ might get always-on channels similar to cable TV

Featuring content from Marvel, Star Wars, and classic Disney

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Disney+ | Disney Plus

The burden of choice on streaming platforms is real. If you’re like us, you’ve spent hours just mindlessly scrolling through titles on Netflix or Disney+ without watching anything. Netflix, at least, has a Play Something button to fight off that irresistible urge. Now, Disney+ is reportedly trying something different: always-on channels.

If you already cut cable from your lives, you’re likely missing traditional channels or networks that have pre-determined programming. It was a flawed system that eventually ended up with mediocre content and a downpour of ads. However, cable did allow us to keep watching without deciding what comes next.

Now, according to The Information, Disney+ is working on adding those channels to its streaming service. Naturally, these channels will include content from the platform’s library such as Marvel, Star Wars, and its list of classic animated films.

Strangely, the reported feature might still have ads in between programs. Though the addition of ads does mean a better similarity with real television, users still have to be paying subscribers to access the channels. Even if you’re already paying for Disney+, you might still get hit with ads.

Disney has not confirmed the reports yet. The platform might launch a version of the feature outside of the scope included in this report. It’s also unknown when these always-on channels will launch.

SEE ALSO: Macross to be available on Disney+

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Google might offer satellite connectivity soon

Starting with the Pixel 9 series

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A few years ago, Apple unleashed one of the most interesting features for the iPhone today: Emergency SOS. Designed for those who like their fair bit of the outdoors, Emergency SOS allows users to contact emergency services without network coverage. Other manufacturers, however, are struggling to adopt the same feature. Now, Google might soon join Apple in providing satellite connectivity for its users.

Despite the convenience, satellite connectivity hasn’t taken off as much as the industry expected it to. For one, a network of satellites isn’t the easiest thing to maintain. Apple is still currently offering its services for free, a gamble that may or may not pay off. Now, the iPhone maker won’t be alone.

According to Android Authority, Google might start offering the same service to Pixel 9 users. Starting with this year’s upcoming flagship, the company is reportedly teaming up with T-Mobile to create satellite connectivity for its users. The telecommunications network is teaming up with SpaceX for the feature.

The same report describes how the feature might work. Once activated, the feature will ask users of their situation: is everyone breathing, are people trapped, are weapons involved, among others. The phone will then relay this information to emergency authorities for a rapid response.

Unfortunately, pricing remains a mystery. While Apple is still offering its satellite connectivity for free, other brands might put the burden of cost on the end user. Hopefully, they won’t, but a paid version is unfortunately expected at this point.

SEE ALSO: Should you be excited for Apple’s satellite connectivity?

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