Applications
New Golf Launchpad edition offers unique gaming experience
MUMBAI: Electric Spin, creators of the Golf Launchpad series of golf simulators, and digital pay-TV technology solutions provider NDS have announced the Golf Launchpad/XTV Experience. The new set-top box edition of the golf simulator allows users to play along with their favorite golfers during televised tournaments. The new gaming experience will be demonstrated at the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show.Golf Launchpad/XTV Experience combines Electric Spin’s golf simulation technology with NDS’s interactive TV technology to create a virtual golf experience. While watching a PGA tour event on television, viewers can use the Golf Launchpad/XTV Experience to virtually play and compete with their own clubs, on the same course, in real time. |
“There are millions of XTVReady set-top boxes in the market today,” said NDS Vice President of Interactive TV Jesper Knuttson. “This opens up a whole new market for interactive sports simulation on TV. Together with Electric~Spin, we are changing the way viewers can interact and experience digital television.”“If you have ever wanted to play side-by-side with your favorite tour player, this is your chance,” said Electric~Spin President Anees Munshi. “This product will profoundly change the way people interact with their television programming.” |
Golf Launchpad/XTV Experience is expected to go on sale in the US in June 2007. |
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.
