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ESS partners SpeedCast for mobile sports content
MUMBAI: ESPN Star Sports (ESS) and SpeedCast have announced an agreement to deliver live premium mobile sports content across Asia.
ESS‘ mobileESPN will showcase live streaming content from its television networks, delivered via satellite to operators‘ streaming platforms across the region.
SpeedCast will provide technical services using SpeedCast‘s MobiCast platform to stream top-class live sports events, such as the FIA Formula One, MotoGP, and the English Football Association (FA) Cup.
ESS executive VP, head of sales Adam Zecha says, “We are delighted to work with SpeedCast as this presents a great opportunity for us to deliver the premium live sports content to fans wherever they are. SpeedCast‘s extensive reach across the region and expertise with mobile content delivery will play a key role in our goal to maximize the availability of world-class premier sports programming, engage sport fans beyond our broadcast channels, and expand our audience demographic across Asia.”
SpeedCast CEO Pierre-Jean Beylier says, “We are thrilled to welcome ESPN Star Sports to our portfolio of premium digital content providers to distribute their content across Asia. SpeedCast‘s expertise in the secure delivery of premium digital content in key markets across Asia-Pacific will help ESPN Star Sports save both time and resources, and help them to expand their broadcast reach in new regions in Asia and with new delivery channels.”
SpeedCast will provide the channel downlink, live encoding and delivery services as well as 24/7 monitoring and operations out of its world-class Network Operations Centre and teleport facilities in Hong Kong.
SpeedCast will support ESS for its encoding requirements and distribution of the channel in the Asia Pacific region. Dealing with more than 50 international and local channels, SpeedCast is a recognized and reliable partner for TV channels looking for expansion into Asia, offering a one-stop solution with post-production, broadcast and distribution services.
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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.
