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Promoters of IndusInd Media to up stake by 1% via preference shares conversion
MUMBAI: The promoters are upping their stake marginally in Indusind Media & Communication Ltd (IMCL) to 93 per cent, after converting preference shares into equity.
The government has permitted the Hinduja-owned company, which runs the cable TV business under the Incablenet brand, to convert seven-year cumulative non-convertible redeemable preference shares into equity.
Amas Mauritius, a promoter group company, had earlier invested Rs 740 million in IMCL, a source said. The cost per share works out to Rs 121 as preference shares being issued is 6.1 million.
With the equity being expanded, the other shareholders will get marginally diluted. IndusInd Bank holds 5.8 per cent and Kudelski, a leading digital security and convergent media solutions company for delivery of digital and interactive content, around 2.2 per cent.
The company had applied for FIPB (Foreign Investment Promotion Board) clearance. With the FIPB giving its nod, the decks are cleared for the promoters to increase their stake marginally in IMCL.
The media subsidiary company of listed entity Hinduja Ventures Ltd is gearing up for digitisation and recently acquired controlling stake in two small-sized cable networks in Kolkata. It already has a strong presence in Mumbai and Delhi, the other two metros which fall under the first phase of government-mandated digitisation. In Chennai, the fourth metro to come under digitisation in the first stage, Incablenet does not have a presence.
IMCL, which has a pan India cable TV presence, is toying with the idea of a reverse merger that would enable it to list and raise funds up to Rs 5 billion through qualified institutional placement (QIP). Earlier, the company had plans to raise $100 million ahead of an initial public offering (IPO).
IMCL posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 632 million on a total Income of Rs 4.81 billion for the year ended March 2012.
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IndusInd Media mulls listing via reverse merger
IMCL sets foot in Kolkata, acquires two cable networks
IndusInd Media plans to raise $100 mn ahead of IPO
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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.
