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Sky strengthens movie offering with SPT deal
MUMBAI: UK pay TV service provider Sky has further strengthened its movie offering through a new deal with Sony Pictures Television (SPT) that will provide customers with access to movies like ‘Men in Black 3‘, ‘The Amazing Spider-Man‘ and ‘Django Unchained‘ before any other TV channel or subscription service.
Under the terms of the multi-year agreement, Sky Movies will be the first subscription service in the UK and Ireland to screen new movies from Sony Pictures, including upcoming titles such as Smurfs 2, This is the End and After Earth. Sky Movies customers will be able to enjoy exclusive subscription access to Sony Pictures‘ new releases around six months after they have ended their run in cinemas. Once on Sky Movies, the titles will be exclusively available for at least a year.
Alongside the new releases, Sky Movies customers will also get access to an extensive collection of classic films from the Sony Pictures library, including the first three Spiderman movies, The Da Vinci Code and Bad Santa, available on an exclusive basis while they are on the service.
Continuing Sky‘s commitment to offer customers new ways of accessing Sky content, the full range of new and classic titles included in the agreement will be available to Now TV customers with a Sky Movies monthly pass. NOW TV, Sky‘s internet TV service, offers easy and flexible access to Sky Movies across many connected platforms and devices.
All movies will be available on demand, on Sky Go, HD, and, where available, 3D, further enhancing the viewing experience and adding more value for Sky customers. For customers who want to take movies with them on the move, the films will also be available on Sky‘s new subscription service Sky Go Extra. For Â?5 a month, Sky Go Extra customers can download movies and entertainment shows to their smartphone, mobile tablet, laptop or MacBook.
Alongside access to the first pay TV window titles, the two parties have also agreed a non-exclusive deal for pay-per-view movies, which will be available to Sky customers through Sky Movies Box Office and on demand through Sky Store. Through these services, all Sky customers can rent Sony Pictures titles, from the latest movies – many at the same time as they are available on DVD – through to an extensive library of classic films.
Customers who subscribe to Sky Movies via Virgin Media, UPC and TalkTalk will also be able to enjoy the full range of subscription films from Sony Pictures.
Sky Movies director Ian Lewis said, “We‘re delighted to have secured Sony Pictures content for our customers, further extending our leadership in movies. We are committed to providing our customers with the biggest and best movies, available to watch when and how they want. That‘s why Sky Movies customers enjoy access to the biggest movies first, in HD, on demand, on the go and in 3D. And with the launch of Sky Go Extra, they can now even download movies to their smartphones and tablets to watch offline.”
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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.
