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Motorola’s brand ambasssador Wyclef Jean launches music phone MOTOROKR U9 in India
BANGALORE: Motorola, Inc. today announced the national launch of the MOTOROKR™U9 (ROKR U9) in Bangalore, which it is positioning as the ‘Stylish side of music’. ROKR U9 was unveiled by Motorola’s brand ambassador and international rocker & musician Wyclef Jean who presented the first ROKR U9 to Miss India World 2008 Parvathy Omanakuttan. Depending upon the features that one selects, the price of a ROKR U9 will range from Rs 10000 to Rs 15000, according to Motorola officials. Motorola claims that through unique advancements in mobile entertainment technology, ROKR U9 makes music a multi-sensory experience and lets consumers rock out and look good – with an elegant form factor, Stereo Bluetooth®4, CrystalTalk™ Technology, external touch sensitive music controls and a unique external display that magically reveals floating, animated screensavers that appear on the external display. “We are working on a marketing campaign with our brand building team and will come up with a campaign across multiple media, including television and the print media,” said Motorola India Mobile devices head of retrial marketing for India and South West Asia Yatin Naik while speaking with www.indiantelevision.com on the sidelines of the launch press conference. “We are targeting the style conscious youth – this is someone who mixes music with style,” added Naik. Additional in-demand features include: Up to 25MB of on-board user memory and an optional microSD memory card of up to 4GB; CrystalTalk™ technology for better call clarity; Stereo Bluetooth wireless technology; Advanced “speaker independent” voice recognition dialing and talking phone features; 2.0 megapixel camera with 8x zoom, multi-shot feature, video capture and playback; Messaging capabilities via MMS, SMS, Push Email; Motorola Setup, Backup and Text for setup of the device for Internet browsing, phonebook and text message backup over the air on to secure servers as a free service to users; Music ID that allows users to easily identify the song. “I‘m excited to be working with Motorola to explore new ways to get my music to my fans,” said Jean, who is currently visiting India for the VH1 ‘Handpicked Series’ of concerts. “The ROKR U9 makes sure I‘m never without my music and looks great too.” Seamless, small and light weight, the ROKR U9 has been designed to fit in the pocket or hand. Its metallic gloss finish comes to life with animated screen savers that appear to “float” across the borderless external display. The external display is not just for show, however, as touch sensitive, digital keys let users control their music player from the outside. Motorola has also created an ecosystem of additional products, accessories and services that make it easy to access and enjoy a wide array of digital music. ROKR U9 is expected to be available for purchase across India by the end of May 2008. The deluxe pack will contain1GB of micro SD card and the premium pack will come with a 2GB micro SD card and the wireless stereo Bluetooth ROKR S9.
Some of the capabilities of the ROKR U9 include: Easy transition from phone to music and back again – one-touch access to your library and pauses music as calls come through; Microsoft Windows Media® Player 11 with simple synching and automatic recognition of the device; Integrated music player supports multiple audio files – Windows® WMAv10 plus Janus DRM, MP3, AAC, AAC+, AAC+ enhanced; USB 2.0 for speedy transfers and data access.
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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.
