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UP govt fixes licence and per connection fee for cable ops
NEW DELHI: Cable operators in Uttar Pradesh have to register themselves with district authorities paying an annual licence fee of Rs 2400 apart from Rs 100 per connection per year with immediate effect.
The State Government has issued a notification for the fourth amendment to the Uttar Pradesh Cinemas (Regulations of Exhibition by means of Video) Rules 1988.
According to the State Government authorities, raids will be conducted from May 2011 onwards to detect unlicensed operators and fine them and may register an FIR against them.
This licensing at the state-level is in addition to the registration carried out at the instance of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry by the Postal authorities under the Cable Television Networks (Regulations) Act 1995.
Apart from Cable Operators, all Cable TV and Dish antenna dealers will also have to pay a licence fee according to the place where they are operating. In Noida and Greater Noida, the fee is Rs 10000, while in Municipal areas it is Rs 6500 and in other areas it is Rs 3000 per year.
For Video libraries too, the licence fee varies from Rs 1500 to Rs 5000 per year depending on their location. The notification also covers permanent and traveling video theatres as well.
The 22-page notification also provides for a ban on the distribution or sale of adult or uncertified film material.
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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.
