Applications
Comedy Central US launches a stand-up app for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
MUMBAI: US broadcaster Comedy Central has announced the launch of CC: Stand-Up, a free app for iPhone and iPad, available exclusively on the App Store. This video App is a stand-alone extension of the channel that brings comedy fans a new stand-up channel, a tool to discover new comics and a platform for sharing comedic content.
Comedy Central adds that it has a history with stand-up. The genre has been a part of the brand since its launch in 1991. As home to the largest stand-up library in the world, the brand‘s CC: Stand-Up App features over 700 comedians, giving fans deep access to a constant stream of content. The App‘s tool for discovery, “Six Degrees of Stand-Up”, uses a recommendation algorithm that will enmesh fans into a web of comedic connections to discover new comics.
For example, after viewing Pete Holmes, Six Degrees generates a web of additional comedians based on similar sensibilities (alternative comedy), topics (animals) and relationships (love of Ryan Gosling).
With comedy content being the social currency in which young men connect, the App also gives fans the ability to watch curated playlists and share videos via Facebook and Twitter.
Viacom Entertainment Group executive VP multi-platform strategy, development Erik Flannigan said, “At its simplest, CC: Stand-Up is a digitally distributed, pure stand-up channel, in which fans can immerse themselves for hours with just one touch. Layered onto that is an intuitive on-demand and recommendation platform, which makes the discovery of new comedians something fun to explore. It‘s got the whole ‘lean forward, lean back‘ thing people always talk about, only for real.”
The CC: Stand-Up App content will be promoted on all the broadcaster‘s brand extensions including the linear channel, cc.com, Comedy Central Certified Clubs, Comedy Central Radio and Comedy Central Live Entertainment.
Axe Face is the official launch sponsor and has created a “Laugh Your Face Off” featured playlist.
Applications
With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
