Applications
Cable spend in US jumps 9.1 per cent in 2009
MUMBAI: Advertising spend in the US on cable TV has gone up by 9.1 per cent in the first three quarters of 2009, according to a report from market research firm Nielsen.
Spanish-language cable also saw positive gains that surged by 36.7 per cent. Compared to the same time period in 2008, Spanish-language television‘s adspend (cable and network combined) remained flat, falling just 0.7 per cent.
TV ad spending overall fell 8.3 per cent year-on-year. Network TV was down 13.9 per cent, while spending on syndicated TV dropped 15.9 per cent. The total spend on ads placed on TV accounted for 56.8 per cent of all advertising expenditures so far this year, up two percentage points from the year-ago period.
Despite a decline of 31 per cent, automotive continued to be the top ad-spending category followed by pharmaceutical. Quick service restaurant, wireless telephone services and department stores round out the top five product categories in ad spending.
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.
