Applications
Nimbuzz raises $15 million to develop products
MUMBAI: Nimbuzz, the mobile Voice-over-Internet protocol (VoIP) and Instant Messaging (IM) provider, has raised $15 million in a second round funding. Nimbuzz will use this latest funding to develop its product offering for the wide range of handsets, across multiple IM and social network communities and different countries. The team will also work to extend Nimbuzz’s reach to other platforms including Windows Mobile, iPhone and Android and will implement additional social and presence-based features to its clients. The second round of funding was led by Naspers/MIH with Nimbuzz’s other major existing investor Mangrove Capital Partners also participating. Lugt added, “By incorporating our applications, social networks can offer their users fully integrated real-time communication services like voice calls, chat, file sharing and access to their friends in other popular IM communities such as Skype, AIM, Yahoo, MSN and GTalk. Additionally, their online social networking experience can be extended to the mobile phone, allowing them to become completely connected.” Nimbuzz claims of dealing with 10 major social networks and three operators already. Last year, Nimbuzz had raised $10 million in funding, led by Mangrove Capital Partners with investments from Naspers / MIH Group and Holtzbrinck Ventures. The money was used for the development of the current product offering, which allows users who download Nimbuzz access to free mobile VoIP calling, conference calling, instant messaging, chat and group chat, as well as photo and file sending across multiple IM communities. It also offers a widget which provides voice to 23 social networks, including Facebook and MySpace.
Nimbuzz founder and CEO Evert Jaap Lugt said, “We are actively working on strategic distribution deals with leading social networks and mobile operators. Our aim is to blend our technology with existing mobile internet access to upgrade the value chain for business and consumers alike.”
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.
