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BBC launches service connecting TV, radio and online content
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster The BBC has launched Connected Red Button. The aim is to reinvent the red button service for the future by effortlessly bringing TV, radio and online content together in the simplest possible way.
The service will launch first on Virgin Media’s TiVo service as part of the innovation partnership agreed between the two organisations to create next-generation TV experiences. BBC Connected Red Button will be rolled out to other internet-connected TVs over the coming months.
BBC Connected Red Button enables users to:
– Watch programmes from BBC children’s channels, BBC Three and BBC Four anytime – day or night – even if the channel is off-air
– Catch up on previous episodes of the shows you love and discover new gems
– Get closer to the latest sporting action, with more streams, clips and content from your favourite events
– Immerse yourself in news and weather headlines and clips that matter to you, when you want them, all at the touch of a button
BBC Connected Red Button arrives in around 1.2 million Virgin Media TiVo homes today and will be available on other internet-connected TVs over the coming months. With new functionality and features added to the service over time, Connected Red Button will redefine how audiences watch, engage and interact with BBC content on their TV.
The BBC has over 13 years of experience developing and evolving its red button services, which have brought viewers closer to the action at major events like Glastonbury, Wimbledon and Formula 1. BBC Red Button now attracts an audience of 20 million per month, peaking during this summer’s Olympic Games, where 24.2 million viewers watched up to 24 live streams via the red button.
With predictions that by the end of 2016 there will be almost 22 million connectable TVs installed in the UK, and that over 50 per cent of UK TV households will have a connectable primary set – either directly or via a set top box**, BBC Connected Red Button will give viewers even more reason to connect their TV, and provide a platform to make BBC TV, radio and online content more interactive and engaging in the future.
BBC Programmes, On-Demand GM Daniel Danker said, “With today’s launch of BBC Connected Red Button, the BBC is seamlessly bringing the Internet together with live TV, while making the technology completely invisible. This is red button reinvented, and the beginning of the exciting future of television.”
IPTV, TV Online Content head Victoria Jaye said, “With BBC Connected Red Button, we’re starting with the TV audience who love our broadcast output and we’re curating online content on the big screen in ways that add value to their TV viewing. The audience can sit back and relax – the internet just made TV better.”
Virgin Media executive director of digital entertainment Cindy Rose said, “The BBC understands as passionately as we do how important connected television is for home entertainment. We’re delighted the BBC is working with us to launch another milestone in interactive services. Our commitment to this partnership of innovation means Virgin Media TiVo customers are the first to experience the latest interactive services at the press of a button.”
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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.
