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TRAI decides to restrict entry to Open House on Media Ownership
NEW DELHI: Alarmed by the disruption of the Open House on Media Ownership in Hyderabad by local cable operators and multi-system operators, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) today issued a notice restricting entry into the Open House to be held in Delhi on the same issue later this week.
In a mail sent to some prospective participants, Trai asked them to come with indentity cards and to register themselves in advance.
The Cable Operators Federation of India President Roop Sharma said this would mean cutting out a large section of consumers since the mail has been sent to a select few, and also bar those who have not received the mail. The initial notice on the Trai website says ‘Interested Stakeholders/industry representatives are invited to participate.’
She said that this also amounted to a violation of the transparency clause enshrined in Section 11(4) of the Trai Act.
During the Open House in Hyderabad yesterday, a large number of LCOs and MSOs wanted the Trai officials to attend to their queries and the meeting had to be called off mid-way.
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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.
