Month: May 2008

Iovation Reduces Fraud For Online Dating Community

Posted on May 29, 2008

Whitelabeldating_iovation_loga PRESS RELEASE — May 29 — WhiteLabelDating.com has implemented iovation's ReputationManagerTM, a device-based fraud management service that helps reduce online fraud and abuse, across the company's portfolio of over 500 sites. To date, iovation has helped WhiteLabelDating.com successfully block over 1,200 fraudulent and abusive attempts within its network. 

The full article was originally published at AD Hoc News, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: iovation is now live with several sizable dating sites. In a nutshell, you can collaberate with other dating site owners to kick the bad guys off your site.  They are funded by Intel Capital and SAP amongst others.  See iovation.com for a news clip with the CEO,  Greg Pierson. He describes iovation as a virtual crime fighter.  41st Parameter is another option.  (Disclosure: iovation and WhiteLabelDating.com are clients of Courtland Brooks)

Online Matchmaking Sites Court U.S. Muslims

Posted on May 29, 2008

Arablounge_logo
WOMENS ENEWS – May 29 — Even though El Jamal lives in the
United States, she expects her route to marriage will follow the
customs of her Palestinian family and many traditional Muslims. Neither El Jamal nor her
parents think the Internet is the place for a Muslim woman to meet a
suitor. However a
growing online matchmaking movement has Muslim women elbowing aside
courtship traditions from their computer keyboards. Sites, such as Arablounge.com, which has 275,000
members including Arab Muslims and Christians, cater to ethnic
communities. Others, like Muslima.com and Naseeb.com, are for Muslims
of all ethnicities. FULL ARTICLE @ WOMENS ENEWS

Matchmaking Sites Work Harder To Attract Clients In Slump

Posted on May 29, 2008

Dating_sites_loga_hodne DALLAS NEWS — May 29 — Along with the high-profile pay sites such as Match.com and True.com, a flood of free sites, such as PlentyofFish.com, niche sites and even social networks vie for amorous clicks. Match.com's nearly $350m in revenue and 1.35m paying subscribers place it atop the industry. True.com doesn't disclose revenue figures but its Internet traffic fell the most of any of the top 20 dating sites measured by ComScore in March, down 39% over last year. "The market for paying users of online dating is nearing its natural limit", said Jupiter Research analyst Nate Elliott. Free sites and niche sites for ethnic or gay daters are a greater lure, he wrote.

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

OKCupid’s Investor/Partner Pitch

Posted on May 29, 2008

Okcupidnew_logo THE PARADIGM SHIFT — May 28 — OKCupid power point investor/partner pitch. Evidently Match.com has only 1.2m active users every 8 weeks. Meetic only has 400,000 active users and no other dating sites in the industry break 100k active members in two month time span!  Okcupid supposedly has 500k "active members" and PlentyofFish is excluded.

The full article was originally published at The Paradigm Shift, but is no longer available.

WhiteLabelDating Debuts Mobile Platform

Posted on May 28, 2008

Whitelabeldating_logo NETIMPERATIVE — May 28 — WhiteLabelDating.com has recently launched a mobile dating platform for its Singles365.com site. The new mobile platform, developed by Mobestar, will enable users to access their online dating services via their mobile for the first time. WhiteLabelDating.com will roll out its mobile services to all partners free of charge, allowing them to run their own mobile dating services alongside their regular online dating site, providing new revenue streams with no extra running costs.

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

Mobestar Launches Its Own Branded Dating Site Using WhiteLabelDating.com

Posted on May 27, 2008

Mobestar_logo BUSINESS WIRE — May 27 — Mobestar launched its own branded dating site, 2nd Connection. 2nd Connection will be the company's first business to consumer (B2C) service and has been constructed using Mobestar's products and services. It will be aimed at the lucrative '30 plus' market. FULL ARTICLE @ BUSINESS WIRE

Mark Brooks: WhiteLabelDating.com is powering Mobestars's dating site.  Mobestar's key competitoin are Trilibis (powers Match and Webdate), Plutolife (powers a dating site that starts with L and ends in life), and Enpocket (powered Match in the past) are the leading competitors for Mobestar.  (Disclosure: WhiteLabelDating.com is a client of Courtland Brooks)

BharatMatrimony To Offer Health Check Ups

Posted on May 27, 2008

Bharatlogo MONEY CONTROL — May 27 — Metropolis Health Services India, experts in healthcare since 1981, and BharatMatrimony, India's leading matrimony portal, launched a joint initiative to promote premarital health check ups. Members of BharatMatrimony can avail the pre-marital health check up at special prices and also upload the certificate as part of their profile. Such profiles will be highlighted as "Health Profiles". Premarital health check ups help in preventing untoward instances of contracting infectious or sexually transmitted diseases, abandonment due to the same, reducing health risk for future progeny. FULL ARTICLE @ MONEY CONTROL

Mark Brooks: Honesty Online offered a similar check in the U.S.A. but there was very little call for a $200+ in-person identity verification, background check, and health check including an AIDS test.  Now Honesty Online offers a ~$10 background check.

World Dating Partners Teams With BuddyCheck

Posted on May 27, 2008

Worlddatingpartners_logo PRESS RELEASE — May 27 — World Dating Partners (WDP) have selected BuddyCheck to provide Age & ID Verification Services to its' members. The BuddyCheck Age & ID Verification solutions consists of providing a matching technology driven through match codes that will confirm or deny the potential member when signing up for the service behinds the scenes. Verification is provided in a real-time transactional environment often taking an average response time ranges from 2.5 to 2.8 seconds.

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

Japan Panel Urges Limit On Mobiles Use By Children

Posted on May 27, 2008

Japan_child_with_mobile AFP — May 27 — A Japanese government panel called on parents and schools to help limit the use of mobile phones by children to prevent them from accessing "harmful" information on websites. While about a third of Japanese primary school students aged 7-12 use mobiles, by the time they get to high school that figure rises to 96%, according to a government survey last December. The advisory council on education made the proposal to Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda as children become more prone to crimes involving dating websites and bullying on Internet school bulletin boards.

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

Mark Brooks: I attended and spoke at the Asian social networking and internet dating conference in Tokyo earlier this month. 'Internet dating' seems like a dirty word in Japan, alas. The internet dating industry has developed a reputation for illicit encounters, under-age connections, and casual dating in Japan.      

Love Is Everywhere Launch

Posted on May 27, 2008

Therightone_togetherdating_loga PR WEB — May 27 — Paul Falzone, a matchmaker with more than 30 years of experience and CEO of dating service The Right One/Together Dating, believes that everyone has a soul mate out there waiting to be discovered. He is promoting his "Love is Everywhere" campaign. Monthly, Falzone will issue tips on where the best places to meet singles are for that particular time of year. The Right One/Together Dating do it the old-fashioned way: one-to-one interviews, caring guidance and a focus on compatibility. "The average initial length of time we spend with a client can be as much as three hours," says Falzone, adding that the process includes being interviewed by a matchmaker, getting personal matches based on extensive research and even running background checks on prospective dates to improve the safety factor. FULL ARTICLE @ PR WEB