MORE than one billion people are confined to their homes right now as more governments around the world close their borders and carry out a total lockdown or movement control measures to stop Covid-19 from spreading.
With more than 316,000 people testing positive and the death toll surging past 13,600 worldwide [based on data gathered by Corona Tracker (www.coronatracker.com)], staying at home is the best solution so far. And in times like these, it’s good to see the spirit of helping each other bloom among companies, organisations, artistes and more.
As people are spending 24 hours at home, spending on household utilities like electricity, the Internet and water will go up. But over the past week we’ve seen how telecommunication service providers and broadcasters like Unifi, Celcom, Maxis, U Mobile, Digi and Astro offer free or extra data, hotspot passes, access to all channels and more to their respective subscribers.
With free connection and data here and there, communications among the people are ensured. We may be confined to our homes and unable to see our friends and relatives in person, but we are constantly communicating with each other, more than we did pre Covid-19.
TNB is also playing its part by giving a two-per cent discount, in addition to the six per cent already being enjoyed by domestic consumers for the period Jan 1 to June 30, 2020.
A few days ago, Petronas, via Yayasan Petronas, announced it was giving RM20 million worth of medical equipment and supplies to hospitals and healthcare frontliners while Maybank contributed RM4 million to Mercy Malaysia’s Covid-19 pandemic fund.
As we are living in a highly connected world, anybody or any organisation can chip in to cheer up the people. We’ve also started seeing international artistes play live music on the Internet to entertain their fans around the world.
Coldplay frontman Chris Martin performed a 30-minute live set on Coldplay’s Instagram from his home studio with songs like Viva La Vida and David Bowie’s evergreen Life On Mars. This is part of the Global Citizen Festival’s Solidarity Sessions: Together, At Home series.
Soul singer and music composer John Legend also did an online performance with Stevie Wonder’s hit Love’s In Need Of Love Today, followed by Shawn Mendes and Charlie Puth, who offered fans light entertainment on their social media account.
On the local front, Datuk Seri Siti Nurhaliza and Aizat Amdan took to the Internet to stress the importance of staying at home. Siti did a four-line jingle titled Duduk Rumah, while Aizat played his 2007 hit Hanya Kau Yang Mampu with tweaked lyrics to suit the Movement Control Order (MCO).
It’s amazing how little things can cheer people up. Hopefully, more local artistes will start something similar, maybe with one or two of their top hits to keep people entertained.
Besides artistes, renowned chef Gordon Ramsay contributed by teaching people how to wash hands correctly on his Twitter account, while top Italian chef Massimo Bottura has started an Instagram TV called #kitchenquarantine to share some of his recipes and cooking techniques.
For those who love books, ebooks and audiobooks, subscription service Scribd is giving free access to its library for the next 30 days (no commitment or credit card information required).
The company wants to support the community by giving people access to the world’s largest library during this global health crisis, helping consumers through times of uncertainty. People can also ‘visit’ the world’s landmarks, museums, theme parks, theatres, zoos, etc, for free via their computers and smartphones.
Among them are the Taj Mahal, Eiffel Tower, Stonehenge, Sydney Opera House, Disney World Orlando, Disneyland Anaheim, Epcot Centre, San Diego Zoo, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Nasa Space Centre, Museum of Art, the Guggenheim Museum in Manhattanand the British Museum.
All these are possible with technologies like Google Earth, live-streaming, live cam, interactive timeline and virtual reality. Efforts by celebrities, local and international, as well as companies show how people regardless of ethnicity and locations can come together to help each other during trying times.
This is the best time for companies as well as people out there to chip in. Let’s keep this spirit of giving and helping each other blooming.
The writer is Tech Editor of the ’New Straits Times’ with 25 years of experience covering and writing technology stuff in the consumer, enterprise, telecommunications and emerging technology space
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times