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Online gaming on the rise in US: Study
MUMBAI: Online gaming activity among consumers in US has seen a significant growth as compared to that of last year, reveals data released by comScore Inc, an internet marketing research company. The category attracted 87 million US visitors in May 2009, up 22 per cent compared to the prior year, as users opted for cheaper entertainment alternatives driven by current economic crisis, says the report. Yahoo! Games has been rated as number one site, attracting 19.4 million visitors, and representing a six per cent increase to that of last year. It is followed by EA Online with 18 million visitors, Nickelodeon Casual Games with 14.8 million visitors and WildTangent Network with 13.8 million. Among others, GSN Games Networks managed to bring in six million users with its newly created WorldWinner.com and CrazyMonkey.com, taking its growth to 563 per cent. “Online gaming continues to be one of the top gaining categories over the last year growing at ten times the rate of the total US Internet population and reaching nearly one out of every two Internet users,” said comScore director – gaming solutions Edward Hunter. “The growth in the category is occurring not only at the top gaming destination sites but also through viral distribution platforms, including widgets and applications. In fact, some online gaming companies that distributed their games across sites are reaching as many people as the top online gaming sites,” adds Hunter
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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.
