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Casbaa reveals speaker lineup for convention
MUMBAI: Casbaa has revealed an enhanced speaker lineup for the Casbaa Convention 2011. Themed ‘TV365: Watch Closely!‘ the show will be staged in Hong Kong , from 31 October – 3 November 2011.
Casbaa CEO Simon Twiston Davies said, “The powerful line-up drawn from networks, governments, ad agencies and media, reflects the importance of Casbaa‘s role as the voice of multichannel TV in Asia. From industry leaders to key analysts, our annual Convention attracts the best of business through the exchange of essential information and innovative ideas.”
This year‘s top-tier line up of speakers includes NBC Universal International – Comcast and NBC Universal president Jeff Shell. He will talk about ‘A vision for Pay-TV‘.
Shell is responsible for overseeing the operations of all NBC Universal International businesses including International TV Distribution, Global Television Networks and International Television Production and responsible for identifying and executing all international growth opportunities for both NBC Universal, and the Comcast Corporation.
CITVC president Liang Xiao Tao will talk on ‘China TV at Home and Abroad‘. Tao was successively appointed as the director of Advertisement and Economy Information Centre, the director of News Centre, and the director of Chief Editor Office of CCTV. He was promoted as CCTV vice chief editor in 2010 and has served as China International TV Corporation president since January.
Microsoft Corporate VP, Media and Entertainment Group Blair Westlake will shed light on ‘Talking TV‘. Westlake liaises for Microsoft with the media and entertainment industries, including Hollywood studios, global broadcasters, cable/satellite programmers and the music industry. He directs business development, policies and all content licensing for Microsoft services and products including Xbox, Zune, Windows PC and Windows Phones.
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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.
