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Prime Focus Tech pockets cloud computing orders from broadcasters & studios
MUMBAI: Media and entertainment companies have been sailing on the cloud of cloud computing. And one of the companies that is bearing the fruits of this is Prime Focus Technologies (PFT), the technology arm of media and entertainment services leader Prime Focus.
PFT today announced that it has secured orders worth Rs 2 billion in the previous quarter from existing and new clients in India, and the US which are to be executed over the next three to five years.
The company was unwilling to name the clients on account of NDAs with them. All it said was that the new clients include the world‘s largest news aggregator, a prominent Indian studio and a new Indian television channel, each of which have signed multi-year deals for PFT‘s Hybrid Cloud Technology – Clear, a cloud-based Media ERP and technology infrastructure platform that helps manage the business processes of M&E companies.
PFT works with major content owners like Star India, Eros International, Sony Music, Viacom 18, Multiscreen Media BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India), the IPL (Indian Premiere League), Hindustan Unilever, The Associated Press, A & E TV Network, Netflix, Schawk! and WPP.
Says PFT founder, president & CEO Ramki Sankaranarayanan: “Increasingly M&E companies are adopting cloud technologies across the enterprise content operations. They are not only migrating to digital file-based workflows but starting to adopt a Media ERP solution to manage the business processes around content. Clear‘s proven credential of managing over 300,000 hours of content is helping the growth of our order book.”
Meanwhile, parent company Prime Focus today announced that it has entered into an initial non-binding memorandum of understanding with US-based Medient Studios. Under this, Prime Focus and Medient shall execute a definitive agreement within 90 days for the provision of production and post-production equipment, work flow technology and skill transfer by the former for the latter‘s megastudio project.
Medient chairman & CEO Manu Kumaran has ambitious plans to develop a 1500 acre site in Effingham, Georgia, in the US which will house movie studios, entertainment facilities and a campus at an initial investment of $90 million. He estimates that the Prime Focus contribution is worth in excess of $40 million.
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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.
