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Mobile Vas market growing in South Asia, Middle East
MUMBAI: Mobile markets across regions are intensely competitive and some of them have reached saturation in terms of penetration of addressable markets.
With tumbling voice tariffs contributing to declining Average Revenue Per User (Arpu) rates, mobile operators are actively pushing for growth of the non-voice value-added services (Vas) market. Despite the economic uncertainties, the mobile services market in South Asian and Middle East countries continues to sustain a growth path, especially in countries such as India.
The key trends in this market have been noted in analysis done by Frost and Sullivan. Presently, mobile voice revenues constitute the largest chunk of mobile operator‘s revenues, relegating mobile data revenues to a miniscule percentage. However, the mobile operators have realised that in order to curb depleting Arpus, they would need to widen their focus on increasing data revenues. In the case of Messaging, the popularity of Peer to Application (P2A) SMS, where mobile subscribers respond to an application such as voting through SMS for a TV programme, is on the rise.
In terms of the premium mobile entertainment content segment, it remains the most significant form of mobile Vas across the South Asia and Middle East geographies.
Frost & Sullivan industry analyst, ICT Practice, , South Asia and Middle East Lavanya Palani Batcha says, “With many markets almost reaching saturation point or having surpassed saturation in terms of mobile subscriptions penetration, telecom service providers are in need to bolster the ARPUs; and mobile VAS has the potential to alleviate this issue of declining ARPUs.”
The regional trend in different countries is equally interesting. India is the fastest growing mobile market in South Asia with good potential for growth amongst the rural population. The mobile VAS market is set to grow at a strong CAGR of 16.6 per cent from 2008 to 2015.
Saudi Arabian mobile market has a high mobile penetration. However, the country still witnesses steady year-on-year growth in this sector. Vas market is expected to exhibit CAGR of 10.6 per cent between 2008 and 2015.
Sri Lanka has a relatively moderate mobile user penetration of 42.4 per cent; hence there is good potential for growth. 3G services such as Video SMS, Dial and Watch TV have been introduced.
The UAE has one of the highest mobile subscription penetrations in the South Asia and Middle East region. Both mobile operators, Etisalat and Du, increasing their focus on revenue streams from Vas and mobile TV and mobile internet, have strong potential.
The Egyptian mobile market still possesses a sizeable under-penetrated addressable market, thereby providing avenues for growth. Relatively strong CAGR of 14.1 per cent is estimated for the mobile Vas market in Egypt between 2008 and 2015.
Pakistan‘s mobile market is robust with intense price wars amongst the local and foreign mobile operators. Estimated mobile Vas market CAGR is 16.8 per cent between 2008 and 2015.
The mobile Vas market in South Asia and Middle East is anticipated to exhibit strong to moderate growth owing to untapped potential for Vas in these regions, 3G networks proliferation, and a saturation of revenues, and adoption of plain vanilla mobile voice services. The market is also expected to witness the emergence of stronger mobile VAS content providers/aggregators with the ability to grasp better revenue shares from the mobile operators.
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.
