Applications
Multi-screen experts to host Breakfast Forum
MUMBAI: A group of vendors supporting premium adaptive streaming technologies are offering a free Breakfast Forum, prior to the IP&TV World Forum, which will preview some key themes in the over-the-top (OTT) video services marketplace.
Attendees can now sign-up online for the Capitalising on OTT Breakfast Forum to be held on 22 March in London.
The Breakfast Forum, coordinated by Verimatrix, the specialist in securing and enhancing revenue for multi-screen digital TV services around the globe, will feature a series of short presentations and a roundtable session moderated by Heavy Reading senior analyst Aditya Kishore.
To help determine what OTT service delivery approach might produce the best return on investment (ROI), operators are turning to their technology partners to help analyse development and network integration plans. In turn, equipment manufacturers and software developers are navigating rapid technology and standards advances that push the envelope on quality and versatility of service delivery.
The common goal is to achieve quality of experience (QoE) akin to the TV for Internet-delivered video to television sets, a feat that was difficult in the past due to the lack of quality of service (QoS) guarantee in unmanaged networks.
During the free Breakfast Forum experts from AwoX , Harmonic, Minerva, RealNetworks and Verimatrix, will discuss key aspects of an OTT offering that expands revenue opportunities with services to diverse devices, offered both inside and outside an operator’s managed network. Additional topics of discussion include:
• Best practices for integrating OTT services with existing digital TV offerings
• QoE advantages of adaptive rate streaming protocols for broad-based OTT services
• The role of standards and ecosystems in evaluating adaptive rate streaming solutions
• Secured revenue as a key driver for new breeds of service as the market expands from advertising to subscription-based models
• Latest consumer and operator research on optimizing OTT services
Kishore will kick-off the discussion by analysing the impact and implications of OTT video on network operators, and their plans for expanding TV services to multiple consumer devices. He will discuss findings from two of Heavy Reading’s proprietary 2010 surveys: the Multiplatform Video Distribution study and the U.S. Pay TV Subscriber study.
Kishore said, “Service providers need to determine how they are going to integrate traditionally unmanaged OTT video within their network infrastructure, and simultaneously determine how to deliver new video services on multiple platforms outside of their managed network. The panel of experts that has been assembled for the Capitalising on OTT Breakfast Forum is exceptionally well qualified to help broadcasters and network operators explore the challenges and implications of OTT service delivery.”
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.
