Applications
IPTV Q4 growth decelerates in the US: Study
MUMBAI: The growth of the US Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) market continued to decelerate in the fourth quarter of 2012, due to the impact of Hurricane Sandy and the slowing expansion of Verizon‘s FiOS service.
The two major US IPTV players, Verizon and AT&T, reported a combined gain of 326,000 video subscribers in the fourth quarter, down by 19 per cent from the 402,000 acquired during the same period in 2011, according to the IHS Screen Digest.
This marked the second consecutive year of slowing subscriber growth in the fourth quarter, with the total for the last three months of 2011 down 7 percent from 430,000 in 2010, as presented in the figure below.
For the year 2012, net subscriber adds for the two US IPTV services amounted to 1.3 million, down 14 per cent from 1.5 million in 2011.
Through 2017, both the major US IPTV players will continue to see their subscriber gains moderate as the market becomes more mature. By 2017, IHS Screen Digest expects that IPTV in the United States will account for 13.4 million pay-TV households, or 10.8 per cent of all pay-TV subscribers.
IHS senior analyst for television research Erik Brannon said, “Verizon‘s Fios accounted for the majority of the slowdown, as the fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) service added only 134,000 subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2012, down from the 194,000 gained during same period in 2011.
“The disruption caused by hurricane Sandy may have slowed FiOS‘s progress. However, the major reason for the deceleration is that FiOS is largely finished expanding its footprint into new geographic areas of the United States. FiOS‘s penetration is significantly higher than that of U-verse, causing long-term growth to slow for Verizon‘s IPTV service.”
Fios Slowing-but Still Growing: Fiox in 2012 increased its video subscriber base by 553,000 to reach 4.7 million, up 13.3 percent from 4.2 million in 2011. This represents a 21 percent reduction from the 701,000 increase in 2011.
Fios‘ video penetration now stands at 33.3 percent, compared to 31.5 per cent at the end of 2011. Still, the largest US IPTV provider grew its video subscriber base by 13.3 per cent this past year.
The Expanding U-verse: AT&T continues to maintain its growth in its U-verse video services, as 192,000 subscribers joined in the fourth quarter of 2012, only 8,000 less than during the same period in 2011.
U-verse video subscribers grew 19.6 percent for the year and now stand at 4.53 million, closing in on FiOS‘s total video subscribers. With a much broader rollout of U-verse, the fiber-to-the-node service passes 72 percent more eligible video homes than FiOS. Given a significantly larger reach and low video penetration of just 18.7 percent, AT&T is also able to maintain steady growth in gains for its IPTV services.
All told, U-verse added 745,000 subscribers in 2012, down just 7.3 percent from 2011‘s net gain of 804,000 subscribers.
IPTV for Everybody: IPTV growth continues in the US, although at a reduced pace. Plenty of room for expansion remains as Fios focusses on penetration levels and U-verse stresses marketing to its lightly penetrated footprint.
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.
