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Mobile is a ‘remote control’ for life: Synovate
MUMBAI: Three quarters of mobile phone owners across 11 markets never leave home without their phone while a third ’cannot live without it’. Meanwhile, 67 per cent regularly use the alarm clock feature, reveals global market research firm Synovate. |
Synovate’s global head of media Steve Garton said that these small-but-powerful devices are so ubiquitous that by last year, more human beings owned one than did not. “This sheer volume, coupled with enormous marketing potential that is just starting to be realised, means that marketers need to understand as much as possible about how people use their phones, how they feel about them – and what they want more of. One very important point about the marketing potential of the phone is that people tend to classify the mobile phone differently to mainstream media like television, radio, print, outdoor and even the internet. Most people do not think of phones as a media platform at all,” Garton says. Synovate surveyed over 8,000 mobile phone owners across 11 markets to find out more. Me, myself and my mobile: The Synovate survey showed how much people depend on their phones. Three quarters of the 8,000 plus respondents never leave home without their phones (led by 92 per cent of Russians and 89 per cent of Singaporeans) and more than a third (36 per cent) go as far as to say they cannot live without their mobile (topped by 60 per cent of Taiwanese and 49 per cent of Singaporean respondents). Synovate MD in Taiwan Jenny Chang said that there, the mobile is part remote control, part security blanket. Chang averred, “Mobiles give us safety, security and instant access to information. They are the number one tool of communication for us, sometimes even surpassing face-to-face communication. They are our connections to our lives.” The survey also asked people that ‘if lost, which would be harder to replace your mobile phone or wallet / purse?‘ and found a quarter (25 per cent) of all respondents nominated their mobile. Garton said, “The mobile has yet to take over the wallet or purse as the absolute epicentre of people’s lives but it is certainly on the way. “This is happening now, for example, in the Philippines and Africa where millions of dollars have been transacted via mobile. The telco has effectively become a bank, allowing even those in rural areas to send and receive mobile money. This is just one of the huge benefits which are changing lives in developing nations,” Garton added. Russians were most likely to nominate the mobile phone as the biggest replacement challenge – one in two would find it extremely difficult to replace. 39 per cent of Russian respondents said their wallet or purse and 11 per cent were undecided. Synovate’s director of marketing communications for Russia, Maria Vakatova, put this down to the sociability of Russians and the inconvenience of losing a phone. Vakatova said, “Typically Russians buy a more expensive phone than they can afford – it’s a status thing. They are also emotionally attached to their phones – there are irreplaceable pictures, videos and so on that people probably don’t have copies of on computers. This loss would be devastating.” The Philippines was the closest market to being split on the issue, with 47 per cent saying their mobile phone would be harder to replace and 52 per cent choosing the wallet/purse. |
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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.
