Pinoys’ events planning app wins Google developer contest

MANILA, Philippines - Now there’s an app you can use when planning events — and it was developed by Pinoys, who won an award for it. 

The Events KIT app, available for free on Google Play, was created by a team of mobile application developers from Smart Communications Inc.

It was declared the best entry from Southeast Asia in the Social/Personal Productivity/Games/Fun category of the recent Google Apps Developer Challenge.

The winning team is composed of software developers Rod Coronel and Charmane Santiago, and design specialist Eugene Gagolinan.

They used Google APIs (application programming interface) such as Calendar, Drive, and Places to produce the app, which makes it more convenient for users to set events, share files with fellow event attendees, and see the current location of the people they are about to meet.

Events KIT also makes it easier for attendees to call, text, e-mail, and chat with each other. 

Smart senior manager Edmon Joson, one of the mentors of the winning trio, said the team considered Filipinos’ love for social networking while working on their app.

“What makes Events KIT different from other events management apps is its social sharing capability. Event or meeting participants can upload photos, presentations, and other files to a shared,” Joson said.

The Smart developers spent more than a month to conceptualize and create Events KIT. The app was declared the challenge winner after two rounds of scoring by judges selected by Google. The team received $20,000 and three Chromebooks. 

“At first we did not even know there was a $20,000 prize. The money was not really a motivation. We just wanted to show the world what Filipino developers can do. We also wanted to create an app that people will enjoy using,” Gagolinan said.

Michael Padua, Smart department head for Internet product management, is “very proud” of the team.

“Their commitment to excellence and innovation reflects Smart’s determination to provide cutting-edge products, services, and programs that will help Filipinos ‘Live More.’ So if you are a technology enthusiast who wants to work with the best and be the best, I invite you to join Smart,” he said. 

“This is a victory not only for the team, but for the country as well. They are one of two Filipino groups that won in the competition. Their achievements highlight the capability of Filipino developers to produce world-class apps that are relevant to the lives of ordinary Filipinos,” he added. 

For their part, the winning developers expressed their appreciation for the support they got from Smart. 

“We want to thank the Smart Developer Network (Smart DevNet) for encouraging us to join this competition, and our bosses at Smart for cheering us on through the late nights and working weekends,” Coronel said. 

Smart developer evangelist Paul Pajo said Smart developers are constantly being encouraged to become active players in the Android developer community.

“They are urged to carve some time out of their busy schedule to stay updated with what’s happening in the community,” he said. 

Smart, through its developer community Smart DevNet, provided sponsorship and assistance to the Philippine legs of the international competition organized by local Google Developer Groups (GDGs).