FT – Feb 13 – Internet dating companies are expecting a boost in business in the run-up to Valentine’s day as increasing numbers of people log online for love. "We start to see an increase in activity from the end of Dec and that builds up to Valentine’s day,” said Karl Gregory, managing director of Match.com in the UK and Ireland. The UK market, with an estimated £120M a year in revenue, has more than 800 dating websites. Edinburgh-based Cupid, which trades under names including benaughty.com and girlsdateforfree.com, is the sector’s only London-quoted company. The company projects achieving £100M in revenue by 2014, a fourfold increase on 2010. It has spent more than £10M on acquisitions to raise client volumes, expanding operations to 16 countries using 10 different websites. Unlike Match.com, which builds up strong single brands, Cupid focuses on a lot of niche markets such as expat Indian dating and single parents.
by Christopher Thompson and Jennifer Thompson
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Most dating sites do most of their ad spends from November to March. Thanksgiving through Valentines is the boom period and peaks +30%.
Most dating sites do most of their ad spends from November to March. Thanksgiving through Valentines is the boom period and peaks +30%.