AWW – Dec 10 – According to a new study by the University of Chicago and eHarmony.com, over a third of today’s marriages start online. Of the 19,131 married couples surveyed, 6 per cent of those who met online ended in divorce, compared to 7.6 per cent of those who met offline.
Month: December 2014
Momo vs. Momo: China’s Tinder Fights For Its Name
WSJ – Dec 9 – Hangzhou Momo Wedding Service sued the better-known Beijing Momo Technology, the one set for a Thursday U.S. IPO , alleging they have exclusive use of the brand for what in China is called the friend-making businesses. The trial will likely take place around the end of December. Beijing Momo was founded in March 2011. Hangzhou Momo had the Momo trademark transferred to it this year from a software business.
Australians Lost $23M In Online Dating Scams This Year
DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA – Dec 9 – According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, total losses for dating and romance scams reached ~$23M this year. The ACCC has sent almost 1500 letters to potential victims in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory as part of its Scam Disruption Project.
by Nelson Groom
See full article at DailyMail.co.uk
SparkStarter Matches People Using Facebook
PIERCE COUNTY HERALD – Dec 9 – Tony Kramer is set to release SparkStarter, an app that uses an algorithms to generate compatibility percentages based on Facebook profiles. Users can also play matchmakers. After logging in through Facebook, users decide whether they want to search for themselves or if they want to play matchmaker. They browse their friends and friends of friends. As singles scroll through, the app randomly generates matchups and displays a % representing their compatibility based on Facebook profile info.
by Michael Longaecker
The full article was originally published at Pierce County Herald, but is no longer available.
TangoWire Partners With White Label Dating
PR NEWSWIRE – Dec 10 – TangoWire, America’s largest private label dating solution, has chosen White Label Dating as a strategic partner. ~3,5K TangoWire sites will migrate to White Label Dating platform.
The full article was originally published at Virtual Strategy, but is no longer available.
China’s Gay Hookup Apps Seen As Cash Cows
GLOBAL TIMES – Dec 8 – Blued, a gay hookup smartphone app, recently received $30M funding. Similar gay matchmaking apps have also attracted investment. Zank, an app similar to Blued, attracted a $3.25M investment this July. Zank has drawn ~5M users since its launch in 2013. Blued is the most popular gay app in China. The app has 10M users.
by Liang Chen
See full article at Global Times
This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.
Cupid’s Shares Dropped 24%
DAILYRECORD.CO.UK – Dec 8 – Cupid's shares dropped 24% on Monday on the announcement it plans to sell off its remaining dating sites as it looks to reclassify as an investment company. Cupid has agreed to sell off its core dating sites Cupid, UniformDating and LoveBeginsAt, to Tradax IP Licensing, Together Network Holdings and Together Networks for £3M. It also proposes to rename itself Castle Street Investments plc if plans to reclassify as an investment company are approved.
by Scott McCulloch
See full article at DailyRecord.co.uk
This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.
IDEA – Internet Dating Executive Alliance
OPW – Dec 5 – IDEA is for owners, executives, and ideas people who run Internet Dating sites. Learn more about us at our shiny new website. Email me at mark@courtlandbrooks.com if you're an owner/exec/key-innovator and would like to join. It's free. Irena and I will be running a few secret events at the Internet Dating Conference in Las Vegas in January. A couple soirees, and then a couple hikes on Friday and Saturday. – Mark Brooks & Irena Brooks
IAC Has Tinder, Cupid Plc Has Tangle
STV EDINBURGH – Dec 4 - Tangle is a new location-based dating app developed with Cupid. On top of matching people who 'like' each other, it also sends push notifications to users when they walk past each other in the street or are in the same cafe or club.
by Claire White
See full article at STV Edinburgh
Q&A With DateMy’s 26 Year Old Founder – Rachael Wardle
HUFFINGTON POST – Dec 4 – Rachael Wardle, 26, has launched datemy.co.uk, an online matchmaking site that encourages singles' nearest and dearest (sibling, daughter, son) to find them matches and help find love.
Q: How did you get the idea for "Datemy”?
A: I was inspired by a real life matchmaking story. My dad was a single widow when I was growing up. He was set up with a family friend and went on to marry two years later. Datemy was originally going to be a single parent matchmaking platform, but a lot of people know someone single they would love to set up.
Q: How did you get the money for it?
A: I crowd funded datemy back in January on banktothefuture.com.
Q: What is the ambition for the business?
A: For datemy to be an international and profitable brand.