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Pay-TV biz lost 119,000 subs in Q2: Kagan report
MUMBAI: Confirming that the cord cutting trend still prevails today, a report of research firm SNL Kagan revealed that pay-TV businesses lost 119,000 net subscribers in the US in the third quarter. This is the second consecutive quarter loss of pay-TV subscribers amid a weak economy.
The effect was even more significant for cable providers like Warner and Comcast that lost 741,000 customers while satellite providers and other companies gained 621,000 customers.
‘It is becoming increasingly difficult to dismiss the impact of over-the-top substitution on video subscriber performance particularly after seeing declines during the period of the year that tends to produce the largest subscriber gains due to seasonal shifts back to television viewing and subscription packages,’ the Kagan report noted.
The quarterly performance reportedly represents only the second time the pay-TV business has lost customers. The recent quarter was topped by the previous quarter, when 216,000 subscribers terminated their service.
Most cable operators have denied the existence of ‘cord cutting’, arguing that the concept has yet to impact on subscriber numbers. Others claim that pay-TV providers will be the last to admit such a situation that may scare investors or lead more customers to consider ending their service.
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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.
