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ESPN eyes upside in pay revenue on back of 4 big events
MUMBAI: On the back of four big sports events over the next 12 months, ESPN Star Sports (ESS) is targeting an aggressive growth in pay-TV revenues.
ESS will showcase the ICC Champions Trophy
2009, Airtel Champions League T20 2009, Fifa World Cup 2010 and ICC World T20 2010.
Says ESPN Software India associate VP, affiliate sales Makarand Palekar, “Riding on this strong content which will enable us to post strong revenue figures for this fiscal, we are looking at a sizeable growth in our paid subscriber base across India.”
The sports broadcaster claims that it has signed renewals with DEN India on a national basis, InCable in South India, SitiCable in Kolkata & Mumbai, ICC in Pune, Manthan, Calcom, KCBP and Cablecom in Kolkata, Seven Star in Mumbai, UCN in Nagpur and a host of other affiliates across the country.
The ICC Champions Trophy, starting from 22 September, will see the top eight cricket nations fight it out for the coveted title. The tournament will have 15 matches.
The Champions League T20 will see 12 domestic T20 champions from seven test-playing countries play 23 matches for the title ‘Champion of Champions‘.
The ICC World T20, to be played from April to May 2010 in the West Indies, will have as many as 27 T20 matches.
The Fifa World Cup, to be played in the month of June and July next year, will have 32 countries fighting it out for the trophy from 64 matches.
Palekar says 60 per cent of the broadcaster‘s revenue comes from distribution. He adds that last year the broadcaster had decided not to rock the boat. The understanding reached with the distribution community was that this year there would be an increase in declarations from the cable TV operators.
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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.
