Applications
Inter-ministerial group to study Trai recommendations
MUMBAI: An inter-ministerial group headed by J S Mathur, additional secretary in the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry, will examine the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India‘s (Trai) recommendation against allowing government or government entities in television broadcasting and distribution.
The I&B Ministry has already cleared a proposal for the setting up of an inter-ministerial group, which would in fact function as an institutional mechanism to study all the recommendations made by Trai.
The I&B Ministry will take a view on the recommendations of Trai after the inter-ministerial group gives its views. This could mean a decision on the application by The Tamil Nadu Arasu Cable TV Corporation for a digital addressable system (DAS) licence for Chennai would be delayed.
Any prolonged delay in deciding on Arasu‘s application, which was submitted in July, could also have an implication for implementation of digitisation in Chennai.
Mumbai and Delhi have already switched over to digital delivery of television channels, while Kolkata is almost through.
The I&B Ministry had in November made a reference to Trai to re-examine its 2008 recommendations which said government, government entities and government-owned companies should not be allowed in television broadcasting and distribution. Trai stuck to its 2008 views and also reiterated that any government entity allowed in television distribution should be allowed an exit route.
Apart from central government ministries, the governments of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Punjab also have expressed intentions of launching their own television channels.
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.
