Applications
IPTV to gain relevance with broadband penetration
NEW DELHI: IPTV has failed to take off in India due to low broadband penetration and failure of government to help establish a quality of service standard. The government also did not pay much attention to this sector after issuing guidelines, according to Time Broadband CEO Sujata Dev. |
Addressing the concluding session of the India Digital Networks Dev complained that after paying off the broadcaster and the others, content aggregators for IPTV have very little left of revenue to pocket. With both DTH and Cable being very strong, IPTV needs to develop its own identity, she added. Asked why she had switched her attention to developing content for mobiles, she said wireless connectivity would always have an edge over wireline connections. But the cost of 3G spectrum was very high, she said. She said her company had now become more of a content delivery network as there was no distribution via IPTV. Answering a question, she said the government had hoped that IPTV would help push broadband penetration, but this had not happened. There was need for awareness to grow in this region, but the government was “not even looking at this sector.” Seagate Technology country manager for India and Saarc Rajesh Khurana said storage was an important issue for both IPTV as well as mobiles. The last mile connection would need tailorised options, and personal video recorders (PVRs) had to be low cost and would need a management strategy, he added. |
Applications
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.
