Applications
Facebook launches Messenger app on Android
MUMBAI: Facebook has launched a new messenger app for Android phones which will allow mobile users to sign up for a messenger account with name and phone number and send messages to their phone contacts instantly.
The app has been launched on Messenger for Android, first in India, Australia, Indonesia, Venezuela and South Africa, and then to countries soon.
"Users can now sign up for a messenger account with just their name and phone number, so they can send messages to their phone contacts instantly," Facebook said in a statement. "The goal is to make the new messenger experience better by expanding its reach and giving its users the ability to connect with all of their phone contacts."
The Messenger will allow anyone with a phone number, and not just those on Facebook, to send and receive messages. While an update to Messenger for Android is available today, the Messenger accounts will become available over the next few weeks. It is a stand-alone mobile application and is free to download. It will use customer‘s existing data plan.
People who do not have the Messenger app on their phone will receive chats and messages sent to them wherever they log on to Facebook.
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.
