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Zeel forms JV with US firm to launch entertainment portal, Kanwal is CEO
MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) has entered into a joint venture with US-based digital media company Mail.com Media Corporation (MMC) to launch an online and mobile entertainment portal.
The company has appointed Arvindra Singh Kanwal, who has 23 years of experience in business strategy, marketing, sales and operations, as the CEO of the joint venture. He has worked Hindustan Unilever, Sony Entertainment Television, Indian Express Online Media Ltd and Rediff.com.
The JV company is launching a content-centric portal will offer users a broad range of entertainment viewing options and other leading portal applications. The launch date and name of the site, however, are yet to be disclosed.
Says Zeel CEO and MD Punit Goenka, “This partnership comes at the right time as India’s inclination towards digital entertainment is increasing. Being pioneers in the media and entertainment sector in India, it is most natural for us to provide wholesome entertainment to our viewers. With the launch of this portal, we will reinforce Zeel as the one-stop destination in entertainment.”
MMC, founded by Jay Penske in 2004, owns and operates the Mail.com email service and portal, a global multi-media platform. In addition, MMC owns a portfolio of lifestyle brands that provide original content in categories including entertainment, sports, breaking news, media, finance, health, beauty, shopping, fashion and automotive.
Says Penske, “We are thrilled to be entering India through this long-term partnership with Zee Entertainment-and look forward to leveraging our digital capabilities and content, to enable the portal to meet the evolving online and mobile needs of audiences at this exciting time within the media landscape of India.”
Some of the brands of MMC portfolio include Mail.com, Hollywoodlife, OnCars, Movieline, Deadline, Fan, Young Hollywood Awards, Hollywood Style Awards, Fashion Rocks, Hamilton Behind the Camera Awards and Breakthrough of the Year Awards.
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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.
