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STBs moving fast in Mumbai, Delhi
MUMBAI: Multi-system operators (MSOs) have in store 200,000 set-top boxes (STBs) and orders have been placed for importing more to meet the growing demand from consumers, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) chairman Nripendra Misra tells Indiantelevision.com. The offtake of STBs has been slow in Kolkata while there seems to be a healthy demand in Mumbai and Delhi, he adds. MSOs have seeded 135,000 boxes in Mumbai, 105,000 in Delhi and only 24,000 in Kolkata. |
“Kolkata is slow to take off and our feedback is that most of the consumers are opting for free-to-air (FTA) package at this stage. But overall Cas (conditional access system) is getting accepted by the consumers,” says Misra. Mumbai with 130,000 has the maximum number of STBs in stock while Delhi has 55,000 and Kolkata 20,000. But the major MSOs like Incablenet, Hathway Cable & Datacom and Wire & Wireless India Ltd (WWIL), who are operating in multiple cities, have no problems in shifting the boxes according to the consumer requirement. Misra admits, though, that there are “reports of shortages in some pockets.” Consumers falling under the Cas areas did not order for the boxes earlier and there is a rush only after Cas got implemented which has led to this current situation, he clarifies. |
The cable & broadcast regulator has called for a meeting with the MSOs on Friday to take stock of the Cas situation. The Trai will be sending teams to Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata from Monday to make spot assessments, Misra says. |
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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.
