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Airtel digital TV launches interactive service for farmers
NEW DELHI: Airtel digital TV, the DTH service by Bharti Airtel, has launched a new interactive service iKisaan, specially designed for the Hindi heartland viewers residing in Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh and Jharkhand.
The company claims that it is a first of its kind offerring for rural India.
An agricultural service, iKisaan will allow subscribers in these states to get real time access to crop prices, prevalent agri-input prices of seeds, pesticides, weather information and localised farming advisory which is specific to their district – all in Hindi.
The service will be available to all the Airtel digital TV customers at no additional cost for the first month from launch.
Bharti Airtel director and CEO DTH services Ajai Puri said, “Airtel has always been at the forefront in understanding the customer needs and using technology to deliver offerings that enable their lifestyles. iKisaan is a pioneering initiative for rural India, which reiterates our commitment to offering innovative services that cuts across different customer preferences. With over 60 per cent of our customers coming in from rural areas, applications like these will create a stronger connect with our customers.”
The service is powered by Handygo and aggregates content from authentic repositories that provide authentic localised information on crop, agri-input prices and information on weather.
The launch of iKisaan comes on the back of recent introductions to its interactive services portfolio with iDarshan, iGoodlife and iAstro.
Airtel digital TV currently has six interactive services-iLearn, iNews, iDarshan, iGoodlife, iAstro and iKisaan. iLearn is priced at 10 a month, iDarshan at 15 a month and iGoodlife at Rs 10 per month.
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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.
