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Dishtv selects Scopus Video Networks to increase transponder capacity
MUMBAI: Subhash Chandra‘s Dishtv has expressed serious intent to increase its channel offerings on the direct-to-home (DTH) platform. The company has selected Scopus Video Networks, a provider of digital video networking products, to support this expansion.
The technology will help Dishtv pack up 28 channels per transponder, eight more than its current capacity. “We will be implementing this technology within a month. It is a better compression system without sacrificing the quality,” Essel Group director technology Amitabh Kumar tells Indiantelevision.com.
Dishtv has seven transponders on NSS-6, offering a total of 130 channels. “We are building up the capability to offer more channels on our DTH platform,” Kumar says.
Dishtv will use Scopus products to enhance its transponders‘ utilization and expand its already fast growing DTH market share throughout the Indian subcontinent. The decision to tie up with Scopus comes ahead of Tata Sky‘s DTH launch expected in July.
The deal brings to Dishtv‘s headend Scopus‘ full line of products including E-1200 encoders, IRD-2900 decoders, IVG-7100 intelligent video gateway (IVG) platforms and network management system software. Scopus is a Nasdaq-listed company.
Scopus‘ IVG platform will provide advanced video processing capabilities including joint transrating, grooming and bit rate shaping.
India is beginning its transition to digital TV in which the number of digital subscribers is expected to grow ten-fold within the next five years.
Says Kumar commented, “We operate in a complex web of multiple satellites and multiple carriers and the unique capabilities offered by Scopus‘ product line such as the Intelligent Video Gateway will help us optimize operations while minimizing cost and enhancing reliability in our operations. Scopus has also helped Dish TV achieve very high satellite utilization and bring down costs on a per channel basis.”
Scopus VP sales Eitan Koter stated, “We are honoured and delighted to continue doing business with the Essel Group, India‘s leading media conglomerate. This achievement is a testimony to our on-going commitment to our customers‘ success. Scopus is the only vendor that offers a full product portfolio under one roof, enabling us to provide simple solutions to complex requirements such as the ones posed by Dishtv.”
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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.
