DATING SITE SAVVY – Dec 3 – eVow have recently released dating Apps for Android and iPhone. It’s refreshingly different from it’s parent companies App POF. Over 5K people had downloaded the Android App in the past month, compared to ~1M downloads for the POF. Downloads are quickly rising though.
The full article was originally published at Dating Site Savvy, but is no longer available.
WEBWIRE – Dec 4 – Voting for the 4th Annual iDate Awards ends January 4,
2013. The winner is announced on January 17, 2013 in Las Vgeas during
the iDate Internet Dating Conference. Voting is online at http://www.idateawards.com and closes on January 4, 2013. Industry professionals and the general public are encouraged to vote.
13 categories exist for the awards:
BUSINESS WEEK – Dec 3 – At age 78, Neil Clark Warren, who founded eHarmony 12 years ago, is taking back control. Since becoming CEO in July after a series of CEO changes, he’s fired 100 people, cut the board from nine to two and bought back stock from Sequoia Capital and Technology Crossover Ventures, which invested $110M in 2004. Gone from the company are the business degrees, and in are social scientists. Sales growth slowed from 16% in 2008 to 6.3% in 2010 and an estimated 3.8% this year to $275M, according to IBISWorld. Sales in the U.S. online dating market are expected to increase 5.1% annually, on average, over the next five years to $2.6 billion in 2017 from $2 billion this year, IBISWorld said. The business has gained entrants, with companies including POF and Zoosk tapping a younger demographic, and Badoo going after consumers more inclined to use smartphones than computers. Warren sees multiple opportunities for growth. He estimates that of the 120M single people in the country, only 5M are on a dating site, so just getting more to gravitate to the Web will expand the market.
by Ari Levy
The full article was originally published at Business Week, but is no longer available.
TIMES OF INDIA – Dec 3 – Growing population of youngsters and changing cultural dynamics are set to boost India's online dating market, with the count of users likely to touch 115M in three years with market size to be $206M. According to group dating site StepOut.com, there are ~6M people who use online dating services in the country. Another online dating site QuackQuack.in, that also began operations last year, expects the online dating industry to see an annual growth rate of 20%.
DAILYMAIL.CO.UK – Dec 3 – One New York 'Wall Street Professional' has posted an advertisement for a 'good writer' who has a 'passion for social media' to manage his online dating schedule. The business executive states he is seeking a woman only for the Online Dating/Manager role. He isn't the first to use this dating outsource tactic however. Professional services to outsource online dating do exist. Virtual Dating Assistants employs people to help manage online love lives, and Scott Valdez, its 27-year-old CEO said he started the company after advertising on Craigslist himself. The number of matches, and the nature of the services, depends on the fee paid – which can range from $147 a match to $1,200 a month for the full dating service.
THE VANCOUVER COURIER – Dec 3 – Of the 1.2M, 80% were single while 18% were married. eHarmony, Plenty of Fish and Match.com boast of their high success rate and their ability to predict matches based on compatibility. The idea that online dating is reserved for the desperate, weird and older individuals is being challenged. The highest demographic signing up for online dating is between the ages of 23 to 29.
by Amy Yew
The full article was originally published at Vancouver Courier, but is no longer available.
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MARKETWIRE – Dec 4 – Zoosk signups for Couple Profiles has reached 3.3M users in the six months since launching. Today, 15% of new Zoosk signups are registered to use Couple Profiles. Of Couple Profiles users, 50% are married, 40% are in a committed relationship and 10% are engaged. "Finding a significant other is just one stage of a person's romantic life," said Alex Mehr, co-founder and co-CEO, Zoosk. "Six months ago, we introduced a joint profile that allows couples to share their romantic journey with friends and family. Millions of people have already embraced the new feature validating the market need for such an offering."
WEBWIRE – Dec 4 – Safecharge’s VP of sales, Meidad Sharon, will speak at iDate’s payments session. The session will cover payment related issues for the industry, including credit cards, mobile, micro-billing and alternative payments. The 10th Annual Internet Dating Conference will be held on January 16-18, 2013 in Las Vegas.
Older sites such as Match.com and newer ones such as DinnerDate, CupidRadar and Grouper, all are focusing on the importance of a personal connection offline. "I cringe a little when people describe it as online dating," said Michael Waxman, co-founder and CEO of Grouper. The typical experience for a Grouper member is to spend ~5 minutes on our website and ~2 hours at a bar with your friends." By the end of this year, Match.com say the site will have hosted ~ 2K events with 150K singles. PlentyofFish, a free online site, also hosts facetoface events.
by Sharon Jayson
See full article at USA Today
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HERALD SCOTLAND – Dec 2 – Cupid is seeking to inject some life into its moribund share price by launching a multi-million pound buyback of its own paper. Cupid said it is to hold a shareholder meeting on December 19 "to apply for shareholder approval for a share buyback programme of up to 10% of the issued share capital of the company". With a market value ~£150M, this suggests Cupid could spend upwards of £15M on the exercise.
by Tim Sharp
See full article at Herald Scotland