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WWIL goes slow on acquisition of cable operators
MUMBAI: Wire & Wireless India Ltd (WWIL) has entered into initial agreements with 18 independent cable operators across the country for acquiring controlling stake but the cash transaction is yet to be complete. The Zee Group‘s demerged cable company would have to cough out Rs 500 million towards this, a source in the company says. “The deals are stuck in various stages of commitment and the payment is yet to be made,” he adds. |
WWIL was on an overdrive to snap up customers and had plans to put in Rs 1.14 billion over a two-year period. But the activity has slowed down as penetration of digital set-top boxes (STBs) has been low. The company is also waiting for the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) to come out with a plan for widespread digital roll out. WWIL is expected to have a turnover of Rs 2.2 billion and a loss of Rs 400 million for the fiscal ended 31 March 2007. The company‘s net sales for the third quarter of the fiscal stood at Rs 407.6 million while net loss was at Rs 171.4 million. |
WWIL has aggressive plans to expand its digital cable business and had earlier projected a fund requirement of Rs 7.14 billion over two years. |
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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.
