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Verizon ties up with DirecTV to create a triple play for wholesale customers
MUMBAI: Verizon and DirecTV has entered an agreement that will enable Verizon wholesale customers to sell a package of voice, DSL and DirecTV services that is designed to offer a superior and more value-oriented alternative to cable “triple play” offers.
Under the agreement, telecom service providers that utilize Verizon‘s popular wholesale advantage voice service and selected high-speed data services can also receive DirecTV service and sell all three services to consumers at a competitive price. The companies expect the package to become available in July.
Terms of the agreement between Verizon and DirecTV were not disclosed.
“The agreement demonstrates wholesale telephony‘s progress as an industry since the Federal Communications Commission allowed providers to enter into commercial agreements for many wholesale services last year,” said Verizon Partner Solutions David Small. “Verizon is dedicated to helping our wholesale customers compete with the cable industry‘s triple play. By joining with DirecTV, the market-leader in digital satellite TV services, we add a strong video brand to our voice and DSL services for wholesalers, creating a powerful combination and an attractive triple play at a discount.”
DirecTV sales and service president John Suranyi said, “The triple-play offer for wholesalers enables DirecTV to reach a new segment of customers with an attractive array of services that will more effectively compete with the local cable provider. Consumers have been responding favourably to the superior choice, value and quality offered by the Verizon/DirecTV service bundle, and we believe Verizon wholesalers will find they now have an offer that will invigorate their market.”
Verizon expects to make the bundle available to wholesale customers in July. Wholesalers must buy Verizon‘s wholesale advantage voice services to qualify for the package discount.
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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.
