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BSkyB revenue grows by 10 per cent to ?2.9 billion
MUMBAI: UK pay TV operator BSkyB has posted a revenue of ?2.9 billion for the first six months ended December 2009, up 10 per cent from the earlier year.
Net profit surged to ?256 million compared to ?166 million in the same part of the previous fiscal.
BSkyB also absorbed the cost of strong demand to deliver four per cent growth in operating profit to ?401 million. It made strong financial progress in broadband and telephony and its free cash flow was up five per cent to ?290 million.
In the second quarter, BSkyB had 172,000 net additions taking the total customer base to 9.7 million. Now 18 per cent of customers take TV, broadband and telephony.
Says BSkyB CEO Jeremy Darroch, “It has been another good quarter in what remains a tough environment, with more customers joining Sky and strong demand across our entire product range. The standout performance came in high definition TV with almost half a million customers
choosing Sky+HD for our best home entertainment service.”
While the economic outlook remains uncertain, BSkyB expects to be in a “good position” in 2010 as it continues to focus on a consistent set of priorities. In addition to customer growth and take-up of additional products, it will seek to extend and build on leadership position in high definition and seek to grow its share in home communications.
“The company will continue to invest sensibly where it sees long-term advantage and stay disciplined on costs,” says Darroch.
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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.
