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Xbox DVD player cuts price by 10%
MUMBAI: Microsoft has announced a 10 per cent price reduction for its Xbox 360 HD DVD player that it offers as an add-on accessory to its video game console. The price cut is from $199 to $179 starting 1 August. The price cut is a sign of the increasing competition between the HD DVD and Blu-ray disc high definition formats. Xbox 360 HD DVD buyers between 1 August and 30 September will get five free HD DVD movies by mail-in, from a catalog of 15 films picked for the promotion which include Apollo 13, Seabiscuit, Constantine, Casablanca, We Were Soldiers, U-571 and Blazing Saddles. Rival Sony’s PlayStation 3 console has a Blu-ray disc player that is considerably more expensive than the Xbox 360 but it features only a standard definition DVD player. Recently, the Japanese consumer electronics giant which is championing Blu-ray disc technology against HD DVD reduced the price of the PS3 in north America by $100. Microsoft VP Jeff Bell said that the $20 price drop would enable the Xbox 360 HD DVD player to be the most affordable way to enjoy high definition films. “From the beginning, we set out to offer Xbox 360 owners an unrivaled high-definition experience, with a choice of optical discs on the HD DVD format and digital downloads through Xbox Live Marketplace,” he said. The company also announced that the movie ‘300‘ and pilot program for Heroes:Season 1 would be available in HD DVD format and it would also be unveiled at Xbox Live Marketplace on 14 August.
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.
