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Fox acquires ad tech firm to boost MySpace
MUMBAI: Fox Interactive Media (FIM) in the US has bought ad technology firm Strategic Data Corporation. It is hoping to better leverage the data of its social networking site MySpace from user profiles, blogs and bulletins. |
The acquisition will allow for more-refined audience segmentation and contextual micro-targetting. |
Media reports state that FIM will be able to create lifestyle audience segments and ad packages for performance- and CPM-based ad campaigns. The company has not yet employed user profile information to target display ads, but it has used the data to better target Google sponsored text ads. FIM properties generated more than 40.4 billion page views in January, according to ComScore, with the vast majority coming from MySpace. News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch recently said that MySpace is generating about $25 million per month in ad revenue, growing at about 30 per cent per quarter. Yet despite the fast growth rate, the site lags far behind revenue generated by sites of similar size, with generic ad impressions often priced at less than $1 CPMs because FIM has so far not been able to target them to visitor interests. |
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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.
