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MediaTek invests $20 million in Spice Digital
MUMBAI: MediaTek, a fabless semiconductor company for wireless communications and digital multimedia solutions, has invested $20 million in Spice Digital, a mobile value-added services player in India with a presence in close to 20 countries.
Spice Digital was incorporated in 2000 and has over 30 million subscribers. It offers solutions for telecom operators, enterprises, and government agencies using different mobile connectivity mediums of Voice, IVR, SMS, USSD, WAP, 3G & mobile applications.
MediaTe chairman Ming-Kai Tsai said, “The mobile Internet presents a wealth of opportunity for MediaTek and we believe India‘s IVR and mVAS market, where Spice Digital‘s core business lies, will continue to grow. Through this investment in Spice Digital, we are hoping to capitalize on its market potential and reinforce its strong operator relationship and leading position in India, SEA, Africa and Middle East.”
Spice Global chairman Dr. Bhupendra Kumar Modi stated, “India is already one of the fastest growing large economies in the world and has the potential to become the world‘s largest economy. Mobile Internet can help India achieve double digit GDP growth rate and our businesses continue to lead the country‘s move on the digital highway with mobile Internet. MediaTek is well known as a leading Mobile IC solutions provider. We are very excited to have signed this definitive agreement with MediaTek. Through this investment, we can together offer more advanced and innovative services and enrich the digital mobile life of the future.”
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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.
