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TV Everywhere, OTT via the internet create debate at Casbaa Convention
MUMBAI: TV Everywhere and Over the Top Television (OTT) via the internet created some sharp debate during the first day of the Casbaa Convention 2011 in Hong Kong. The onset of new and global internet-delivered TV services such as Hulu, Netflix and the BBC I-player as extensions of traditional cable, satellite and IPTV systems was declared as “inevitable” by many speakers and delegates drawn from Asia and the rest of the world.
Hulu senior VP International Johannes Larcher said, “You can‘t stop the OTT revolution. There are many incremental revenues to be made from OTT.”
Yet the question remains “Who will pay?” and how will content and multichannel TV platform operators monetise and retain revenues while engaging with “authorised” customers?
In the opening session of the day on the changing world of TV, Microsoft corporate VP, Media and Entertainment Group Blair Westlake shared his anticipation that the evolution of the smart, digitally “Connected TV” could soon match the speed of collaborative innovation witnessed in the past three years. He added that tablets and smartphones and “smart glass” have fast become the focus of the entertainment experience.
Even so, BBC Worldwide president, worldwide networks and Global iPlayer Jana Bennett noted that audiences still want a mass experience. Yet part of the future growth for content will come from mining niches and catering to passions.
Facebook director North Asia Jayne Leung later highlighted the multiplier effect of new audience engagements. Fans recommending TV content to friends present an immense opportunity to content owners and marketers to establish life-long connectivity, she said. Google AP director, strategic business development Michelle Guthrie reinforced that collaboration is key to the future innovation of the industry and ecosystems should underpin this collaboration.
Meanwhile, in his welcoming remarks Financial Secretary of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Hong Kong SAR) John C Tsang highlighted the benefits to the multichannel television industry of Hong Kong‘s level playing field for business and the free flow of information, including a free and unfettered media.
“We pursue market-driven, technology-neutral broadcasting policies, and regulate the broadcasting industry with the lightest touch,” he said. “I am pleased that Casbaa rates Hong Kong as one of the most favourable and competitive environments for the pay TV industry. This tells us that we must be doing something right.”
Rapid media convergence has made the traditional boundaries between telecommunications and broadcasting increasingly blurred, Tsang said. To sustain a regulatory environment that will help Hong Kong capture new opportunities and meet new challenges, a unified regulatory authority called The Communications Authority will be established in April next year.
Casbaa CEO Simon Twiston Davies added, “What we have seen at the Convention 2011 is that our industry‘s first 20 years is a journey that has only just begun. Even with more than 420 million non-terrestrial TV connections across the Asia Pacific, there is phenomenal opportunity for even more expansion and growth in the region.”
The Casbaa Convention 2011 is being supported by Fox International Channels, Turner Broadcasting, Eurosport, Dolby, Getty Images, ABS, Al Jazeera, APT, Asiasat, Bloomberg Television, CNBC Asia Pacific, Conax, Deutsche Welle, Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific, Disney Channels Worldwide, ESPN Star Sports, Fashion One, Fashiontv, Food Network Asia, France 24, GE Satellite, Globecast, HBO Asia, Intelsat, Invest Hong Kong, Irdeto, ITV Granada, Life Inspired, Measat, MGM Channel, now TV, Paul, Weiss, Playboy TV International, PwC, RRsat, SES, Sundance Channel/WE tv, Synovate, Time Warner, Trace, TrueVisions, TV5 Monde, Universal Networks International, Viacom, WarnerTV and YouTube.
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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.
