Applications
Advantest introduces T6373 LCD driver test system
MUMBAI: Japan‘s Advantest has announced its new T6373 LCD driver test system for LCD source, gate and one-chip controller driver ICs. Available from July it comes equipped with up to 3072 channels and offers parallel test for up to 32 devices. Advantest is an automatic test equipment supplier to the semiconductor industry, and also produces electronic and optoelectronic instruments and systems. Spurred by next year‘s Beijing Olympics and by the rapid transitioning of television broadcast technology from analogue to digital, there is a growing worldwide demand for large, high-definition LCD panels, destined for use mainly for flat-panel digital televisions. Such demand is expected to result in an expansion in the market for LCD driver ICs, a key component of LCD panels. Forecasts suggest that by 2010, shipments of these ICs will increase by around 45 per cent, but that this will represent a monetary increase of just seven per cent. This will lead to mounting pricing pressure for producers. At the same time, test time and test costs are spiraling upward, as the introduction of higher definition and larger LCD panels necessitates faster driver ICs with increasingly high bit resolution and pin count. Such circumstances have led mass producers of driver ICs to press for a cost-effective test The firm says that the new T6373 contributes greatly to reducing test costs. It has up to 512 channels for digital test of image signal inputs and 3072 channels for LCD test of outputs, doubling that of the previous model on both counts, and it provides parallel testing of up to 32 units. It also has twice the capacity of its predecessor for parallel testing of 684-pin and 720-pin driver ICs commonly used in large LCD televisions, with the result that four such devices can now be tested simultaneously. The T6373 has a high-accuracy digitiser unit for each of its LCD channels, enabling testing of higher bit resolution and pin count ICs at a throughput 1.5 times greater than that of its predecessor. It offers lower cost high- precision testing for a wide range of devices, from mass-produced items such as 8-bit (512 grayscale) and 10-bit (1024 grayscale) driver ICs for digital consumer electronics, to new and next-generation items like the 12-bit (4096 grayscale) driver ICs.
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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.
