Month: September 2005

NY DAILY NEWS — Sept 9 — Dr. Zeitoun, 46, married father of three, is being sued by two women he met through an online dating service, and allegedly wooed with tales of past lives and talk of the Apocalypse.  Their suits seek unspecified money damages for infliction of severe emotional distress.  According to court papers, Zeitoun told two women he had been married to them in a previous life, had mistreated them, and searched for them in this lifetime to correct his past mistakes.  He even told Wang that he made a deal with the Devil after being "trapped in hell" for two days in which he promised never to marry – and if he reneged "the whole world would collapse."

The full article was originally published at NY Daily News, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: The world is full of nuts.  Online, offline, in bars…  How can the online dating world improve on the real world?

PR NEWSWIRE — Sept 9 — PrivateTel, a privacy-oriented telecommunications company, has launched Click-and-Connect enabling members to connect by phone without the need to reveal each other's real phone number.  Click-and-Connect dials both parties, who pick up their phones and chat. Personal security expert Robert Siciliano noted, "what most people don't realize is a home phone number can be traced back revealing a home address and social security number. This makes a person vulnerable to identity theft and can create a security risk if a suitor shows up unannounced at your front door." RELEASE @ PR NEWSWIRE

Mark Brooks: The online personals watch white paper on anonymous phone call providers is nearing completion.  I will give an overview and contrast all major providers of this genre of service.  Email me at mark@courtlandbrooks.com if you would like to be on the priority list for a copy.  There's too large of a gap between people emailing/instant messaging on an online dating site and showing up for their first coffee date. Anonymous phone calling services fill that gap.

AGENCE FRANCE PRESS — Sept 7 — A pair of French cooking schools are starting "cook-dating." Last fall they began a weekly cooking class for singles only — three men and three women on the first three Thursdays of every month, and a "gays only" gathering of men or women on the last.  The Ritz Escoffier cooking school will began singles-only classes next week.

Mark Brooks: I'd so like to see large online dating companies embrace singles events again.  Small events don't make much money but are a great way to differentiate and add character to a site.  I teamed Predating.com up with Cupid.com last year.  A marriage made in heaven and a unison that will be nigh impossible to duplicate.

PR NEWS — Sept 7 — An updated version of Seekingandfinding was launched August 11 featuring a new message center and a marketplace for members to advertise.

Mark Brooks: www.joingod.com started several months ago as a spin on Craigslist.  The concept has merit…but the site is 'patchy' as it was pieced together on a shoestring budget. 

MEDIA LIFE — Sept 1 — The number of dating shows on syndication has dwindled from six in 2002 to two, and both are struggling. In July, "Blind Date" and "Elimidate" averaged a 0.8 and 0.9 household rating, respectively.  Season to date, "Elimidate" has averaged a 1.1 household rating, down 21%. "Blind Date" is down 25% with a 1.2 household rating.  "There were too many dating shows, and that accelerated viewer burnout," says Peter Koeppel, president of Dallas-based agency Koeppel Direct. "The dating shows may be an outdated concept."  In 2002, there were shows like "Change of Heart," "Shipmates" and "Fifth Wheel." NBC's fourth edition of "Average Joe" was down 59% from season one in 2003. ABC's five-part documentary "Hooking Up" chronicled the online dating scene in New York City and delivered a weak 3.2 household average.

The full article was originally published at Media Life, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: Time for some fresh ideas.

BUSINESS WIRE –Aug 31 — Kreindler & Kreindler LLP today announced that it has filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of shareholders of Intermix Media (MySpace.com, Alena.com), alleging that current directors, officers and controlling shareholders of Intermix designed a sale to News Corporation that benefited themselves at the expense of the Company and public shareholders.

The full article was originally published at Business Wire, but is no longer available.

PRWEB — Aug 31 — Jaters.com is founded by two experienced Jewish daters. Features include…forums, private photo gallery, private BLOG, speed dating events, top-rated profiles lookup, flash-based live-chat.

Mark Brooks: Step 1, build a great site.  Step 2, invest a few million and grow to critical mass.  Step 1 is relatively straightforward these days. Step 2 takes savvy, a niche focus, and a few mill.  Jdate owns the Jewish segment.