Applications
Netflix reports $8 million profit in fourth quarter
MUMBAI: OTT service Netflix surprised Wall Street by reporting a fourth quarter profit of $8 million. As a result the stock jumped by over 30 per cent.
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said, “Our holiday season was particularly strong, driven by consumers buying new electronic devices, including tablets and smart TVs. We added nearly 10 million global streaming members in 2012; we grew to over 33 million global streaming members; (and) we generated profits for the year 2012, despite large international investments establishing Netflix in 40 countries around the world.”
“When it comes to competition, we not only have a superior content offering due to our larger budget, but we are further along the experience curve when it comes to improving our user interface and delivering great quality streaming”.
The company reported revenues of $945 million, a rise of eight per cent from the same period in 2011. For the future, the company expects to add 1.7 million new members during the first quarter of 2013. But it also expects relatively flat net income for the quarter due to declining DVD profits and increased operating costs globally.
Netflix continues to lose money internationally. During the quarter, Netflix grew to more than six million international members. But the gains in the US more than offset the declines of the DVD unit and international losses.
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.
