AshleyMadison – Page 11 – Online Personals Watch

How The Recent Data Breach Affects Ashley Madison’s IPO

Posted on July 21, 2015

MARKETWATCH / WSJ – July 20 – Avid Life Media, which owns Ashley Madison, wanted to raise $200M in an IPO. A recent data breach may hurt the site’s chances of launching a successful IPO anytime soon. "They've hinged their entire existence on privacy," says Mark Brooks, a dating-industry analyst and the editor of Online Personals Watch. "It's definitely going to affect their IPO plans. It’s going to reduce the value of this company. They're going to see their conversion rates hit, their attention rates hit, and see some people leave. People prize their privacy on online dating sites. This is compounded 1,000 times on AshleyMadison.com over a typical dating site." Other dating site companies with IPO ambitions such as The Match Group, will be doubling down on their security measures, he adds. Ashley Madison said it has now secured the site, called the hack an act of "cyberterrorism" and apologized to its users.

AshleyMadison launched in 2001. "It has helped move adulterers from traditional dating sites", Brooks says. "It's done a good job of cleaning up other sites," he says. Another thing that can affect the IPO are complaints about fake profiles on the site. Ashley Madison has little direct competition. "The entire business is built on the premise that few will follow," Brooks says. "It's simultaneously brilliant and despicable. It gets people talking, which is also good for business."

Biderman acknowledges that there are a lot of hurdles to overcome before an IPO. He says he loves being the CEO of a private company. Brooks says, the site will be working hard to restore confidence in the site among users and potential investors. "They'll also work on search engine optimization over the next six to 12 months to make sure that other more positive stories about Ashley Madison appear when you Google the site," he says. "There’s plenty that can be done. If someone is prepared to spend big money, they can have a story almost disappear by producing more interesting content."

by Quentin Fottrell
See full article at Marketwatch

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Ashley Madison Failed At A Key Value – Privacy

Posted on July 21, 2015

FINANCIAL POST – July 21 – A group of hackers gained access to Ashley Madison's data. This is the second time in two months a prominent dating site has been compromised. In May, hackers leaked info about users of Adult Friend Finder. The married people seeking affairs may be more interested in discretion than the average online dating user, but the hack exposes a vulnerability in the growing industry. Mark Brooks, principal consultant at the online dating industry advisory firm Courtland Brooks, said he would be surprised if Avid Life goes ahead with its IPO on schedule following the attack. "Their key value is privacy. They've failed at a key value," Brooks said. "Their IPO is definitely going to be affected. I can't imagine they'll proceed with it. They're not going to achieve full market valuation."

by Claire Brownell
See full article at Financial Post

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Ashley Madison May Have To Scrap £130m London IPO

Posted on July 21, 2015

STANDARD.CO.UK – July 21 – Dating-industry analyst, and editor of Online Personals Watch, Mark Brooks said: "They've hinged their entire existence on privacy. It's definitely going to affect their IPO plans. It's going to reduce the value of this company. People prize their privacy on online dating sites. This is compounded 1,000 times on AshleyMadison.com over a typical dating site."

by Jonathan Prynn
See full article at Standard.co.uk

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Hackers Threaten To Expose 37 Million Cheating AshleyMadison Users

Posted on July 20, 2015

GIZMODO – July 20 – A hacker group going by the name "The Impact Team" is demanding Ashley Madison to shut down otherwise they are going to expose all of its members. They have already posted a small sample of sensitive data (since taken offline) stolen from Avid Life Media, the company that owns AshleyMadison, along with other hookup sites Cougar Life and Established Men. CEO Noel Biderman confirmed the hack, and said the company was working hard to have the data taken down.

by Chris Mills
See full article at Gizmondo

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Ashley Madison Reconsidering London IPO

Posted on July 6, 2015

BUSINESS INSIDER – July 4 - Ashley Madison revealed that it could abandon its London IPO, which was estimated to raise £135M ($200M) because it has potentially found a "better option." "We don't want to rush and make a mistake, but we are looking to commit to a decision around August," said Noel Biderman, CEO of Avid Life Media which owns Ashley Madison.

by Lianna Brinded
See full article at Business Insider

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AshleyMadison Reveals Hints Of Societal Change In South Korea

Posted on June 12, 2015

AP – June 12 – A large number of women are signing up for AshleyMadison in South Korea. AshleyMadison launched here in April 2014, and within the first two weeks ~50K people had signed up. The site was shut down but opened again in February when SKorea struck down the anti-adultery law. Ashley Madison again took off. In its first two weeks after reopening, ~100K new members signed up, generating $400K in revenue. Successful men caught cheating usually suffer no career setbacks and often stay married. For a woman, however, the damage is "irreparable" – huge social stigma that can include the loss of not only her job but her family.

by Foster Klug & Youkyung Lee
The full article was originally published at Chron, but is no longer available.

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Ashley Madison: Infidelity Could Be A $1B Business

Posted on May 25, 2015

BBC – May 25 - AshleyMadison attempts to raise $200M in an IPO in London – which would value it at ~$1B. This isn't the first time Avid Life Media, Ashley Madison's parent company, have sought an IPO. In 2011, the company attempted to list in Toronto, but was forced to withdraw its offering. European investors might be willing to overlook a few things if the top line figures look good. But some potential investors have questioned the firm's numbers, after former staff and users have complained of a plethora of fake profiles on the site. The company admits many people sign up and never actually do anything. And of course, there is the competition. Gleeden, a French infidelity service that launched in 2009, says it has 2.6M members, primarily in Europe. Manuel Montevidoni, the CFO of Gleeden said: "I don't understand why Ashley Madison is looking for financing." But he supports Ashley Madison's efforts, mostly because it brings public awareness to the ubiquity of infidelity.

by Kim Gittleson
See full article at BBC

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Rich D.C. Residents Cheat More, AshleyMadison Says

Posted on May 21, 2015

WASHINGTON POST – May 21 – Washington DC is the country’s most adulterous city for the third year in a row, according to AshleyMadison.com, a dating site for married people looking for extramarital affairs. Capitol Hill, the land of politicians, staffers and lobbyists is the neighborhood with the most cheaters. AM says 10.4% of Capitol Hill residents are registered on the site.

10 cities with the highest rate of membership on the site:

Washington, D.C.
Pittsburgh
Austin
New York
Boston
Los Angeles
Las Vegas
New Orleans
Houston
San Diego

by Perry Stein
See full article at Washington Post

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Would You Buy Shares In Ashley Madison?

Posted on April 24, 2015

MARKETWATCH – Apr 23 – Avid Life Media, the parent company of Ashley Madison, hopes to raise $200M in an IPO in London later this year. Ashley Madison makes up ~70% of Avid's $150M annual revenue, says Noel Biderman, CEO of the site. AM alone has ~33M members worldwide with 2.3M active users. The IPO plans may be mere flirtation with the media or a way to attract a suitor keen to invest. AM has little direct competition. "The entire business is built on the premise that few will follow," says Mark Brooks, a dating-industry analyst and the editor of Online Personals Watch. "It’s simultaneously brilliant and despicable. It gets people talking, which is also good for business."

by Quentin Fottrell
See full article at MarketWatch

Mark Brooks: I can't quite see investors voting this one up. But I could be very wrong. It will be a fascinating experiment in public acceptance. Is philandering and lying in vogue? Will it be palatable in the financial community. God, I really hope not. As much as it might be a part of daily life for many. I think we need to be more honest and open. I refuse to accept that society accepts 'cheating.' It seems to be the antithesis of where trusting, loving relationships that produce loving families, should end up. Noel knows this. But money is blinding, and plentiful in the philanderers niche.

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The Internet’s Most Hated Man Is Finally Ready To Take His Company Public

Posted on April 23, 2015

MASHABLE – Apr 23 – Nearly 15 years ago, Noel Biederman launched AshleyMadison. He intends to raise ~$200M in an IPO in London later this year. The AshleyMadison IPO will likely be a litmus test for how public investors view a service on the fringes of social norms. That is part of the reason the company is choosing London over New York for its IPO. AM pursued an IPO on the Toronto Stock Exchange in 2011, but investors gave it the cold shoulder.

Q&A with Noel Biderman
Q: Why go public?
A: I’ve tried to attract world-class talent. By going public, you can attract a whole slew of talent and I think this company is worthy of that magnet effect.

Q: How do you plan to grow your business?
A: There's a huge trillion-dollar economy that gets built on the back of unfaithfulness — the hotel industry, jewelry, flowers. Maybe there's an opportunity to participate one level deeper in that economy. If you’re a public company i think they take your phone call.

Q: How much longer do you really plan to stick with it?
A: I think I am going to be tied to this thing forever.

by Seth Fiegerman
See full article at Mashable

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