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Hathway Nasik Cable faces disconnection, to pay Zee Turner
NEW DELHI: The Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has directed Hathway Nasik Cable Network to pay Zee Turner its dues. Alternately, Zee Turner could disconnect the signals to the multi-system operator (MSO). The dispute relates to an outstanding amount of Rs 1.5 million. Hathway Nasik Cable Network is a joint venture company between Hathway Cable & Datacom and a local cable outfit. Hathway Nasik Cable Network had filed a petition stating that Zee was charging it for the local cable operators (LCOs) who had migrated to rival MSO Wire & Wireless India Ltd (WWIL), Zee‘s demerged cable company. Zee was continuing to charge Hathway Nasik Cable for those LCOs. In its argument, Hathway also stated that Zee had been asking for the list of its affiliate local cable operators (LCOs), but every time the list is given Zee poaches on them. This damages Hathway‘s business. |
The MSO told the tribunal that on 31 December 2006, it had provided a list of its affiliate LCOs of whom suddenly 18 migrated to Zee, and likewise some 22 other LCOs of Hathway had been poached by Zee. The MSO said that this poaching has been admitted by Zee, when it offered a discount of Rs 180000 in its billing for Hathway because of migration of LCOs. Hathway also said that its appeal was on the ground that Zee had over invoiced it, including charging it for HBO when it was not giving the film channel to Hathway. Besides, Zee was not giving them the interconnection agreement offer, Hathway alleged. However, Zee contended that every time they ask for the list of affiliate LCOs, Hathway refuses to give it. “When they give the list, there is no subscriber base, and when the LCOs migrate, subscriber base goes up,” Zee stated. Zee said that the tribunal had passed an interim order on 16 November last year, which required Hathway to pay Rs 1.5 million, ad hoc, for avoiding disconnection. However, the payment came with a strange letter. Zee senior counsel Maninder Singh showed the latter to the court, which said that this was the full and final payment from Hathway to Zee for the period September-November, as well as part payment for December 2006. Singh said that Hathway had overturned an interim order and decided to make that a full and final payment, which incensed the court. |
When Zee wrote to Hathway about this strange behaviour of climbing over the tribunal, Hathway wrote back that they deny all such allegations, Singh said. Rarely does the voices rise in TDSAT, but chairman Arun Kumar, visibly angry, asked Hathway: “What business did you have writing that letter?” Hathway seemed to suggest that it was a clerical mistake but the court retorted that it had been signed by an authorised signatory and “in any case, a massive organisation like Hwthway, a man-India player, cannot say this is a mistake.” Singh also refuted Hathway‘s ‘lie‘ that the former had not served a mandatory notice before disconnection, when it showed that a notice had been served in the leading daily of Nasik. Hathway said that the letter was a mistake and indeed, it had made further payments after the Rs 1.5 million amount. But the judges were in no mood to tolerate this outrage, and issued the order to make the payment.
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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.
