PRESS RELEASE – Mar 21 – Spark Networks Q4 revenue was $7.7M, a YOY decrease of 28%. Q4 2016 net loss was $3.7M. For the full year 2016, total revenue was $35M, a decrease of 27% compared to the year ago period. The YOY decrease was primarily driven by 10.3% and 13.4% decreases in average paying subscribers for the Jewish and Christian Networks segments, respectively. CEO Danny Rosenthal commented: "We expect 2017 will be a transformational year for Spark. Our priorities are clear: operating profitably, relaunching our technology platform and driving future growth through effective marketing investments. Importantly, we are on track to deliver our new technology platform and re-launch JDate in Q2 and Christian Mingle in Q3."
Category: ChristianMingle
For Online Dating Sites, A Bumpy Road To Love
NY TIMES – Dec 24 – JDate was created in 1997; ChristianMingle was added in 2001. Spark Networks, the parent company, eventually grew to ~30 dating sites, but the crown jewel has always been JDate. Since 2011, Spark Networks has been led by a rotating array of chief executives — four over five years. According to Spark Networks' 2015 filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the number of paid subscribers to its Jewish networks declined to ~65k last year from 85k in 2012. Its total for all networks dropped by ~55k people, to under 204k. Some of the decline could reflect Spark's management turnover, but it is also indicative of the challenges facing the online dating industry. "It's never been cheaper to start a dating site and never been more expensive to grow one," said Mark Brooks, a consultant for the Internet dating industry who also runs Online Personals Watch. Part of the problem, he said, is that 70% of Internet dating in the US is now on mobile. "It used to be 10% of those who registered converted to paid," Mr. Brooks said. "Now it's more like 2 to 3%." Some also see a move toward ever more niche sites like MouseMingle.com (Disney lovers) and GlutenFreeSingles.com. Spark Networks already offers niche products, but Lisa McLafferty, Spark's new chief revenue officer, says its aim is now to "refresh the brand."
by Alina Tugend
See full article at NY Times
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Spark Networks Q3 Financial Results – Revenue Down 28%, Loss Decreased
MARKETWIRED – Nov 10 – Q3 revenue was $8.4M, a 28% decrease YOY, driven by decreases in both average paying subscribers and average revenue per user. Total direct marketing expenses decreased 72% to $1.2M. Q3 net loss was $94k, a $728k improvement versus the year ago period. CEO Danny Rosenthal stated: "We have made the decision to focus on improving JDate and Christian Mingle. Accordingly, we have paused work on initiatives that do not support this objective which includes the Church Partnership Program, the CrossPaths mobile application, and the expansion of Christian Mingle into Latin America.
See full article at Spark Networks website
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After Settling Lawsuit, ChristianMingle Allows Gay Dating
READING EAGLE – Nov 6 – ChristianMingle.com opened to gay users after settling a lawsuit that claimed that it violated California's non-discrimination law. But the new search function likely won't prove very useful to gay men or women – the site now lets them view profiles of the same gender, but does not specifically show them fellow gay users. Parent company Spark Networks said it has no plans to advertise the site to gay Christians, or to go further to make the site work for gay or bisexual users.
by Julie Zauzmer
See full article at Reading Eagle
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ChristianMingle App Now Available In Spanish
MARKETWIRED – Aug 1 – The Spanish-language app is the latest offering launched by ChristianMingle's parent company Spark Networks. "The launch of this new app represents our commitment to serve the growing Hispanic online dating community, said Michael Egan, CEO of Spark Networks.
See full article at Marketwired
ChristianMingle Partners With 15 New Churches
MARKETWIRED – July 29 – The Southern Diocese of the Fellowship of International Churches has joined the ChristianMingle For Churches program. This fellowship includes 15 churches located in Mississippi and Georgia, all of which now offer ChristianMingle memberships for their congregants. CMforChurches.com offers pastors web tools to help connect singles within their church communities such as a custom site for church attendees, church badging so members can easily meet, 50% off lifetime membership for church attendees.
See full article at Spark website
ChristianMingle Opens Doors To Gay Singles Under Settlement
by Jacob Gershman & Sara Randazzo
See full article at WSJ
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Dating Apps With Highest % Of Women
BUSINESS INSIDER – Jun 3 – SurveyMonkey Intelligence looked at the numbers to see which dating apps have the highest proportion of women. Christian Mingle scored the top spot, with women-friendly apps like Coffee Meets Bagel and Bumble also scoring high. Tinder and Happn ranked lower, while, unsurprisingly, gay app Grindr fell in last place.
ChristianMingle Partners With World Vision
PRNEWSWIRE – Jan 15 – ChristianMingle will donate 50% of all new subscriptions confirmed through their "Do Something Amazing" landing page to World Vision from January 12 – February 14. World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization helping kids and families in poverty.
See full article at PR Newswire
ChristianMingle Got A Makeover
MARKETWIRED – Dec 18 – ChristianMingle has been completely redesigned to debut a sleek new appearance and all-new logo. This makeover is a landmark moment for Spark Networks, the owner of ChristianMingle. In early 2015, the company set out to return to profitability and rebuild this flagship brand.