Applications
comScore expands online video measurement service to Australia, China
MUMBAI: comScore, which measures the digital world, has announced the launch of comScore Video Metrix in the Asia-Pacific marketplace.
comScore’s video measurement product is now available in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore, in addition to the five markets where the service is already available – US, Canada, UK, France and Germany.
Singapore posts highest video penetration: In each of the Asia-Pacific video markets, more than 80 per cent of home and work Internet users (age 15 and older) viewed online video during the month of January. China had the largest video-viewing audience with 199 million unique viewers, who viewed a total of 10.3 billion videos in January.
Japan ranked second with 60.4 million viewers and posted the strongest user engagement with an average of more than 12.5 hours of video viewing per viewer. More than 10.6 million Australians viewed 934 million videos during the month, ranking Australia as the third largest video market in Asia-Pac.
Despite having smaller overall video viewing audiences, Singapore (87.6 per cent) and Hong Kong (87.4 per cent) boasted the highest penetration of video viewers among their respective Internet populations. Both markets also exhibited high engagement with viewers averaging more than 10 hours of online video during the month.
YouTube makes Google sites top video property: Google sites, driven predominantly by video viewership at YouTube.com, was the top video destination according to the number of videos viewed in all markets except China, which was led by three local Chinese video properties – Youku, Tudou Sites and 56.com.
In Japan, Google sites ranked first, followed by local property Dwango (which includes Nicovideo.jp) and NTT Group (which includes OCN.ne.jp). In Australia, Microsoft sites captured the number two spot, followed by Facebook.com.
Facebook.com ranked among the top three video properties in Malaysia, Australia and Singapore, while Tudou Sites ranked second in China, Hong Kong and Singapore.
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.
