NBC CHICAGO – Oct 22 - Earlier this year Sheriff Tom Dart filed a
lawsuit against Craigslist asking a judge to order it to eliminate its
erotic services category. Dart called Craigslist the "single largest
source of prostitution in the nation." This week a federal judge
dismissed his request. Last November, Craigslist pledged to crack down
on prostitution ads as part of an agreement with several attorneys
general. It said it would require anyone who posts such an ad to
provide a working phone number and pay a fee with a valid credit card. FULL ARTICLE @ NBC CHICAGO
Category: Craigslist Personals
Internet Dating Industry May News – 11 Mins
This is actually the news for May. We’re playing catch up. I had some critiques of the video and fixed them. You said you weren’t happy with the sound quality. We fixed it with a pro microphone. You wanted hi-res. You got it. You weren’t happy with the video quality, so I nixed my mug from the video and added hi quality images.
June, July and August are in process.
– Meetic‘s strategy after buying Match UK
– Dating site abuses Obama
– Zoosk adds Netflix and Last.fm to date cards
– CNN features virtual currencies
– Craigslist sues South Carolina attorney general
– DNA dating safety and ethics concerns
– Matchmaking does ok despite the downturn
– Illinois state nixes tax hikes that include taxing dating sites
– Sex toys for the horny Japanese
We’re working on June, July and August videos. Please let me know if there’s any other ways we can do better with them, and make them more useful.
Craigslist Sues South Carolina Attorney General
TECH CRUCNH — May 20 — Craigslist is suing South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster, seeking declaratory relief as well as a restraining order with respect to criminal charges he has threatened against the company and its executives. The company is raising the gloves because it refuses to shut down its operations in South Carolina, claiming it’s in full compliance with all applicable laws and has already done enough by removing its ‘erotic services’ category. FULL ARTICLE @ TECH CRUNCH
Internet Dating Industry Weekly News – 6 Mins
Basisnote scent matching, Speedate on Android, Craigslist to moderate Adult ads, Kaplan launches Flirt140 Twitter dating service, Spark revenue 20% down, Indian matrimonials to hit $63m in 2011, sugar daddy blackmailing, and Air News Zealands matchmaking flight.
Erotic Services Out, Adult Services In
MASHABLE — May 13 — Starting today, Craigslist, has caved to pressure and will no longer allow new ads to be posted to its controversial erotic services section. In its place, Craigslist will erect a pricier and moderated option termed adult services (funny, that sounds like the same thing). Adult services listings will cost $10 per post, and go through a manual approval process. Also of note is that proceeds won’t necessarily go to charity, as was the case with erotic services ads of late. FULL ARTICLE @ MASHABLE
Is Craigslist The World’s Biggest Bordello?
CNET NEWS — Mar 6 — Chicago Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart on Thursday sued the popular Internet classified service, accusing Craigslist of being one of the largest sources of prostitution in the country. Dart said that the kind of sex services being advertised on Craigslist frequently involves minors as well as people forced into prostitution against their will. A Craigslist spokeswoman said that criminal acts are rare at the site. She added that Craigslist helps law enforcement track down criminals every day. Craigslist has pledged to implement new measures, such as requiring anyone who posted an ad in the exotic services section to provide a valid credit card and phone number. The idea is that anyone planning to break the law will be reluctant to identify themselves.
The full article was originally published at CNet News, but is no longer available.
No Recession For Online Dating Sites
LA TIMES — Dec 28 — Online personals websites are experiencing a major boost. Craigslist personals postings and eHarmony.com registrations have each seen 20% increases in 2008. Match.com's memberships were 22% higher in Dec than they were in Dec '07. Both eHarmony and Match.com reported especially high traffic on days when the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted. Money worries are even making them more picky. While Match.com reported a 50% increase in profile views from Nov to Dec, a recent survey of 1,500 members found that 84% of them were "being more selective about first dates." Wendy Rice, a 33-year-old chef from Hollywood, said she'd also experienced an unusually high frequency of daters playing "chicken" with the bill. FULL ARTICLE @ LA TIMES
84% Of Craig’s List Personals Ads Are Fake
PR WEB — Nov 1 — Tom Smiley of The Consenting Adults Network and creator of OnlinePersonalsFraud.com researched the classifieds' personals section to determine how many online advertisements were actually legitimate. After reviewing 6,590 personal advertisements, it was found that 84% (possibly even as high as 91%) of the personal advertisements examined were by imposters posting fake ads. FULL ARTICLE @ PR WEB