Applications
Europe continues to be the strongest region for IPTV
MUMBAI: As IPTV approaches 55 million subscribers globally, it is Europe that still holds the strongest position for IPTV (23.5 million customers) as European markets continue to build their customer base.
The latest deployment information shows that operators are increasingly turning to fiber access solutions to meet the needs of the well-connected home according to Broadband Forum.
Hybrid FTTx deployments rise – 68.9 per cent in past year to 3Q2011. FTTH sees a 30.6 per cent increase in annual growth across Europe.
Point Topic CEO Oliver Johnson said: “The future of Europe, at least for the next 5 years, is going to be dominated by FTTx. The cost of full fiber (FTTH) deployment, particularly the last mile, is prohibitive and so the industry and consumers need a stepping stone which is provided by hybrid solutions such as FTTx. FTTx provides a significant increase in bandwidth and an efficient use of existing infrastructure and allows the welcome continued amortization of costs.”
This update comes from the Broadband Forum on the opening day of the FTTH Conference Europe, which aims to promote the benefits of fiber access across the continent and accelerate the availability of fiber-based, ultra-high-speed access networks to both consumers and businesses.
The international Broadband Forum, whose 200-strong membership comprises service providers, system and chipset vendors, as well as consultants, test houses and research centers, focuses on developing technical specifications to help the industry engineer faster and smarter broadband connections. This work includes its comprehensive BroadbandSuite 5.0 which is a major resource for the fiber industry to facilitate and accelerate the deployment of Pon.
The Broadband Forum G-Pon ONU Certification Programme aims to fuel even greater growth of fiber deployments across Europe. The certification program, known as BBF.247, is open to G-PON ONU products with Ethernet interfaces and is based on the Forum‘s OD-247 test plan. This certification demonstrates that an ONU fully conforms to TR-156 and the associated OMCI configuration as defined in the ITU G.988. It provides vendors with the opportunity to test once and use their certification globally, saving testing cost and time as they compete in RFPs for business. Equally it gives operators increased confidence in their vendor selection processes, another step towards providing truly interoperable solutions.
Broadband Forum CEO Robin Mersh said, “Our G-PON certification programme is proving to be very effective with eight companies already achieving certified products in the past six months. Certification is key to future FTTx deployments and our efforts will enable next generation interoperable systems to come to market faster. Standards provide the foundation for that growth; further demonstrating G-Pon capabilities to meet the demands of evolving operator networks.”
“Operators in Europe have maintained a three year high for IPTV in the region as they have the greatest success in selling additional services to existing customers. G-Pon Certification is set to provide the breakthrough step in accelerating deployments now and creating the platform for innovative applications and new service bundles,” concluded Mersh.
The latest fiber related work at the Forum includes test specifications for additional conformance testing modules for G-PON ONU and OLT.
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.
