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ApnaCircle-Viadeo acquires social networking site Unyk
MUMBAI: The recently merged combined entity, ApnaCircle-Viadeo, has announced the acquisition of Unyk, a Canadian social networking site. This acquisition includes Unyk’s membership of 16 million users that is growing at a rate of 600,000 new members each month. |
Unyk members will now become ApnaCircle- Viadeo members, bringing the global network to over 25 million users and increasing the growth rate of over one million users per month. This acquisition will also help Indian members of ApnaCircle to double their reach and also help increasing the growth rate of ApnaCircle’s network to 150 thousand users per month. ApnaCircle founder and CEO Yogesh Bansal says, “This acquisition will help us to grow Indian market organically. This will also get us critical mass, while providing greater usability and value to our members through Unyk’s smart address book and synchronisation technology. We have been growing at a substantial pace and I am sure this acquisition will help us to grow further”. Viadeo CEO Dan Serfaty says, “This acquisition is highly complementary and more than doubles Viadeo’s network, while strengthening our global and local market presence. I believe we have significantly strengthened our market position and offering, particularly throughout Mexico, Brazil and India, and now have a North American presence, with four million members throughout Canada, the US and Mexico. “We’re building a global platform, but remain committed to developing local offerings specific to each market we service, one of our key competitive differentiators. On behalf of the management team and Board, I would like to welcome the Unyk team to our family.” Unyk is the first smart and private address book that updates itself and is used primarily by business professionals looking to keep multiple address books current with the latest and simplest technology. The company possesses technology services with its core differentiator, a synchronisation tool that enables members to seamlessly merge their address books from Outlook, webmail, cell phones and more. With Unyk, users are able to access a consolidated and up-to-date address book, anytime from anywhere. |
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.
