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Maharashtra’s LMOs to blackout TV on 2 Oct
MUMBAI: A mid- week holiday is always welcome and is a good time to catch up with friends and family as well as your favourite TV shows and channels. However, this Gandhi Jayanti will see a different type of revolt on television in the west Indian state as the Maharashtra Cable Operators Federation (MCOF) has decided to put their foot down on the alleged “harassment” that they have been facing from the MSOs.
From 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm tomorrow, 2 October, about 3,000 cable operators under the MCOF have decided to blackout their screens opposing the ‘high-handed’ behavior that MSOs have adopted towards LMOs (Last Mile Operators), as MCOF president Arvind Prabhoo puts it. This includes the areas of Mumbai, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Nasik and Indore in MP where DAS I and II have been implemented. Approximately 15-20 lakh customers in Maharashtra alone will not get to see their favourite shows during prime time. LMOs in Gujarat have also been approached and a response is awaited from them.
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Arvind Prabhoo feels that it is time to start treating LMOs as equals and respect their demands
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The federation says that its intention is not to harass customers but just demonstrate that cable operators are united and it is high time MSOs give them their due credit in the cable TV chain. Communications to customers have already started in the form of SMSes and emails as well as leading papers – both English and Marathi – are being used to inform people about the flash blackout.
“If the MSOs and broadcasters sit and talk with us there is no need to do this but no one is listening to us,” stresses Prabhoo. He does not even feel that the two will reach out to the LMOs before evening of tomorrow. Initially the plan was to shut it down for a whole day but due to legal regulations, it was reduced to three hours.
This isn’t the end as well. If nothing comes out of this then more such days will see blackouts with increased hours especially during festive times.
There is a possibility that MSOs may take legal action against MCOF for this move but it is ready to fight the biggies. “This is exactly what we are opposing. When an MSO switches off channels on its own, no one questions its decision but the local guy is questioned. No legal action is taken but we have to bear all the brunt from both the MSOs as well as the customers,” adds Prabhoo. Recently, InCable had decided to switch off signals to all sports channels, right before the Champions Trophy T20, a way to bully the LMOs to cough up more cash, claims the federation.
The issues that LMOs have been grappling with are many. Prabhoo points out that last minute decisions taken by MSOs lead to chaos which has to be resolved by local operators. This happened during DAS Phase I when STBs (Set Top Boxes) were being installed in homes. Unending trips to customers to fill forms is a burden on them as well, discloses Prabhoo. MSOs have the power to switch off signals to channels arbitrarily as well as make channels unavailable on a-la-carte rates so that only packages exist. “They should talk business, not superiority or inferiority,” adds Prabhoo.
For now, the impending blackout is on the cards for tomorrow. Unless discussions take place soon, cable TV viewers in Maharashtra could well be in for more evenings of just looking at a blank TV set or one with a flickering static-riddled picture.
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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.
