Applications
Twitter to triple its ad revenues to $150 mn in 2011
MUMBAI: Microblogging site Twitter is expected to triple its advertising revenue to $150 million in 2011, according to a report from EMarketer Inc.
The report said that in 2010 Twitter earned an estimated $45 million through ad revenues. This figure can go up to $250 million by 2012 as more companies turn to the growing social media website to market their products.
“One reason for the dramatic growth forecast this year is the upcoming launch of a self-serve ad platform such as that used by Google and Facebook,” eMarketer said.
Twitter introduced its advertising program last April and has attracted in major ad campaigns from big companies such as Mercedes-Benz, Pepsi, Starbucks and Disney.
“Twitter is poised to go after the same performance advertising business that has funded much of Facebook‘s growth,” said eMarketer principal analyst Debra Aho Williamson.
The San Francisco micro-blogging site won‘t pass Facebook in terms of revenue anytime soon, but it should pass MySpace by 2012, the report said.
Twitter has 175 million users worldwide, whereas Facebook stands with 600 million users worldwide.
Last month, Twitter raised $200 in funding from investors to help fuel its growth, reportedly giving the company a valuation of $3.7 billion.
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.
