Applications
Pace makes its third purchase in Latens
MUMBAI: UK-based Pace is on the prowl. The set-top box (STB) and gateway device manufacturer has acquired Latens Systems, its third purchase this year, as it seeks to strengthen its position in the pay-TV market.
The Yorkshire-based firm has agreed to pay not more than $46.5mn (?28.75mn) in cash, of which $16.2mn (?10mn) is deferred and payable in 2012, subject to the achievement of certain unspecified conditions.
Earlier in the year Pace had bought out residential gateway provider 2Wire and Bewan, another gateways supplier.
The new acquisition will help Pace strengthen its position particularly in the US. Latens is an established supplier of its conditional access solutions to the telecom companies in the US who are losing a good chunk of their voice revenues to cable TV companies and are making attempts at getting a slice of the video market.
Pace will tap smaller clients through the products offered by Latens who prefer single technology providers.
Latens will be part of Pace‘s newly formed Enterprise division that includes its international IP, gateway and networks businesses, established in September, and headed by Mark Loughran, the former MD of Nokia UK & Ireland.
Latens also has offices in Hyderabad, India, and Atlanta, United States.
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.
