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Tamil Nadu to tax DTH, IPL
NEW DELHI: Direct-to-home (DTH) services will be charged 30 per cent entertainment tax in the state of Tamil Nadu, a step taken to support the state-floated Arasu Cable to counter Sun Network.
The state has also decided to impose a 25 per cent entertainment tax on Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket being played in Chennai.
The Tamil Nadu assembly today passed a Bill to impose entertainment tax on DTH and IPL.
The Bill in this regard was introduced in the state assembly today by state commercial taxes minister SS Krishnamurthy and passed unanimously later in the day.
According to the Bill, the DTH service providers, who transmit private satellite channels directly to consumers‘ house in the state, will be imposed 30 per cent as entertainment tax on overall price, excluding the service tax.
A total of 25 per cent will be levied on IPL as entertainment tax on the total sum of cash including the tax amount paid, for getting permission to hold the T20 matches (as part of the IPL) in Chennai.
There are no specifications on imposing such taxes on DTH and IPL under the current Tamil Nadu Entertainment Tax Act. However, the state government claimed that this has been done in many states in the country.
The Bill passed on the last day of its sitting also amends the Tamil Nadu Entertainment Tax 1939 to facilitate the implementation of the government‘s decision.
It may be recalled that the State government had rolled out cable TV operations through Arasu Cable Corporation on 2 September in association with thousands of cable operators at affordable rates for the consumers.
The decision to impose 30 per cent entertainment tax on DTH service providers is expected to help Arasu Cable Corporation‘s activities as the DTH consumers may have to end up paying more.
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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.
