Applications
Cisco providing pay TV to 150 million viewers in India
NEW DELHI: Cisco today claimed it was now enabling a rich and advanced TV experience for over 150 million viewers in India, using the industry estimated average of five people per household.
Thus, it said it had established itself as the leading provider of enhanced TV viewing experiences to more than 30 million Indian homes, a milestone that reinforces the company’s leadership in the digital pay-TV solution market in India.
Cisco service and solution platforms are in the prime position to address the changing needs of pay-TV operators now and into the future, with more than 10,000 R&D experts in Bangalore. It claimed that the company currently enjoys a leading market share in conditional access and middleware. (Source: MPA Media Route, 26 February 2013).
Cisco claimed it is a trusted pay-TV technology partner for more than 100 operators worldwide, with leading direct to home (DTH) and cable operator customers in India including ADN, Airtel Digital TV, Asianet, Atria, CCN, Darsh Digital, DEN Networks, Fastway, GTPL, Hathway, JAK Communications and Tata Sky, to name a few.
Cisco is fully committed to supporting the cable TV industry to meet the government mandate to roll out digital addressable systems in a phased manner by 31 December 2014.
India is the leading DTH satellite market in Asia Pacific with the most subscriber homes and is second only to the US DTH satellite market, which it is expected to overtake in the next few years.
Cisco is committed to delivering a host of world-leading, affordable and innovative solutions and services to help its satellite and cable customers to differentiate their services in their markets in India, which has an estimated 135 million pay-TV homes.
Cisco India and SAARC senior VP sales Jeff White: “The Indian pay-TV industry is one of the fastest growing and most dynamic in the world. India now accounts for nearly a third of Cisco‘s subscriber homes in the Asia Pacific region. We are excited about our leadership in the industry, deep commitment to our customers and sharp focus on innovation in India.”
Cisco service provider video technology group senior VP & GM Jesper Andersen said: “Achieving the milestone of over 30 million digital homes in India is a testament to our commitment to India over the last 18 years and our partnerships with some of the most successful cable TV and DTH satellite platforms in the country. The Indian pay-TV industry is one of the fastest-growing and most dynamic in the world. We confidently expect tens of millions more households to benefit from Cisco’s enhanced TV-viewing experiences, as the demand for advanced services and applications surges.”
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.
