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AT&T to use China Netcom for NBC’s Olympics 2008 coverage
MUMBAI: US telecom major AT&T has announced an agreement with China Netcom to provide telecom services between China and the US during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The services will enable AT&T to provide a dedicated network through which NBC can transmit digital television coverage of the Games, which will be held between 8-24 August back to the U.S. for national broadcast. China Netcom was selected by Beijing Olympics Organising Committee as the exclusive fixed-line telecommunications partner in China for the 2008 Olympic Games. NBC Olympics will provide exclusive coverage of the 2008 Olympic Games to hundreds of millions of viewers in the US. In addition, AT&T and China Netcom are also collaborating to set up a circuit for NBC, which the network will use to broadcast live coverage of the one-year countdown celebration being held in Tiananmen Square, Beijing. AT&T Asia Pacific VP Gopi Gopinath says, “AT&T is proud to support the Olympic movement, built up over many years and is very pleased to facilitate viewing of the first Olympic Games to be staged in China. We are very excited to be working with China Netcom and NBC on this project, and we are confident that the broadcasts from the Olympic Games next summer will be a great success with the help of international private leased line services from China Netcom. In addition, AT&T is the official telecom services partner of the US Olympic Team. AT&T provides a wide range of services to the US Olympic committee, including integrated long distance, data service and audio/videoconferencing services, virtual private networks, managed internet protocol services, wireless services and Web hosting. AT&T also has provided financial support for various US Olympic committee projects, including training facilities.
“The contract also underscores our relationship with CNC and our continued commitment to the China market. As one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, China is a key strategic business focus for many of our global customers, and we will continue to invest in and grow our operations in the country. Through our telecom services joint venture — UNISITI — in Shanghai, China and network interconnections agreements with China Netcom and other local carriers, we are determined to deliver the same level of reliable, high-quality services to our global customers wherever they choose to do business.”
AT&T has been providing communications services to China for more than 20 years. With the Sino-foreign telecom services joint venture in Shanghai and network interconnections agreements with local carriers, including China Netcom, AT&T has national coverage in more than 135 cities and serves more than 300 multinational customers in China.
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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.
