WSJ – May 2 – IAC/InterActiveCorp.'s Q1 profit soared 91% from a year earlier as the Internet conglomerate ramped up revenue from its online dating and search engine businesses. Revenue from Match.com, OK Cupid and Meetic increased 56% to $174.3M. Meetic saw particular gains under IAC's control, boosting revenue 44% to ~$36M.
The full article was originally published at WSJ, but is no longer available.
See all posts on Match.com
See all posts on OkCupid
See all posts on Meetic
THEDRUM.CO.UK – Apr 13 – Match.com’s latest advertising campaign will feature unscripted filmed stories of real members on a first date. The ‘Real Stories’ campaign, by Mother, will begin to air across UK terrestrial, digital and satellite TV from April 14th.
The full article was originally published at The Drum, but is no longer available.
PAID CONTENT – Apr 5 – Match.com that promises “Love is complicated, Match.com is simple” is taking issue with a website that claims “Love is complicated, sex is simple.” In a trademark suit filed in Virginia federal court, Match claims the adult matchmaker has no right to use the names “xxxmatch.com” or “eroticmatch.com.” Match is asking for a court order forbidding the use of “xxxmatch” or the slogan “Love is complicated, sex is simple.” Match also wants the defendants, who are based in California and the Caribbean, to turn over their profits.
MASHABLE – Mar 21 – The state attorney general’s office will work with Match.com, eHarmony.com and Spark Networks to screen for sexual predators, identity thieves and scammers. A joint statement issued Monday notes the prevalence of online dating and says the companies’ main objective is to keep users safe. A Match.com spokesperson told Mashable the site is already taking the precautions outlined in the agreement, and an eHarmony spokesperson said existing screening mechanisms have helped keep sex offenders off the service in the past.
by Kate Freeman
See full article at Mashable
See all posts on Match.com
See all posts on eHarmony
See all posts on Spark Networks
CBS – Mar 15 – “Our algorithm is not based psychological theory,” said Amarnath Thombre who helped design Match.com’s algorithm. “It’s based on rigorous analysis of data of what people actually do on the site.” The Match.com algorithm is behind every single match made on the site. It takes into account the user’s personality, preferences, and their behavior on the site. “The algorithm is constantly following you on the site and getting more and more accurate as you spend more time on the site,” Thombre said. Dr. Eli Finkel, a psychology professor at Northwestern University, has been studying the science behind sites like Match.com. He says the sites are generally good at connecting two people who might otherwise never meet, but he says there’s a certain magic to finding true love that’s not part of a math equation. He says that spark we all seek can only happen with face-to-face interaction.
MUMBRELLA – Mar 14 – Several of the biggest online advertisers in Australia are dating sites, data released by ComScore suggests. The biggest online display advertiser in Australia is Match, with be2. Facebook is by far the biggest publisher of online ads. IAC accumulated ~276M ad impressions, according to the data. be2 delivered 190M ads in Australia.
CONTRA COSTA TIMES – Mar 9 – In dating, women and men have equal rights — but when it comes to popping that first question, it is still a man's world. In a recent Match.com survey of 5K single adults, only 10.8% of women admitted to asking a man out. Men have 20 times more aggression hormones than women do. And men want women who are hard to get because it makes them feel valuable. Some think a woman who asks out a guy comes off as desperate: "Shouldn't she play hard to get?" Certainly, women who prefer the pursuit may face less judgment online, says Whitney Casey, Match.com's Austin, Texas-based relationship expert and author of "The Man Plan: Drive Men Wild — Not Away" (Perigee, 2009).
UNLIMITED MAGAZINE – Mar 6 – In 1965 a group of Harvard students started Operation Match that used questionnaires to identify compatible matches. When the students sold it three years later they had received ~1M responses which resulted in a few marriages. Today North America’s dating sites attracts 22M users a month, says online dating industry analyst Mark Brooks. Online daters have upwards of 1,000 dating sites to choose from, aside from industry giants Match, eHarmony, OKCupid and PlentyofFish. "Starting a dating site is like starting a restaurant," Brooks says. "It’s very attractive but there’s a lot more to it than meets the eye."
Brian Schechter and Aaron Schildkrout created HowAboutWe.com in 2009. The site is built around going on "awesome dates," with users able to see a list of date proposals in their immediate area. The company has raised ~$19M. Another site Sparkology is invite-only dating site. Other startups include Soul2Match, which links potential dates based on their photos and facial features, and Luv@FirstTweet, which uses Twitter to match singles. At TheJMom.com, matchmaking is left up to parents.
In a report in the Journal of Psychological Science in the Public Interest, a team looked closely and critically at the online dating industry. The researchers found that while online dating has great potential to improve meeting potential romantic partners, the exclusive matching formulas many online dating sites claim to have are unsubstantiated and likely little more effective than randomly approaching strangers at a bar. Sites and apps can facilitate face-to-face interactions quickly. Mark Brooks agrees. "I don’t think people want to come home and spend hours and hours tappity-tapping on the keyboard. They want to be in front of people," he says. "Computer-mediated communication is not gratifying enough for the human soul." Brooks thinks three trends will define the future of the industry: location-based services, mobile services and behavioral matchmaking. "Dating sites that do well will be serving their users’ interests, which means a little more immediacy, a little more help and going mobile," he says.
That instant face-to-face interaction is what MeetMoi, a location-based mobile dating company led by CEO Alex Harrington, has been facilitating since 2007. Users are matched with one another based on preferences and proximity, through application-based and mobile web-based dating.
by Cailynn Klingbeil
See full article at Unlimited Magazine
See all posts on Match.com See all posts on HowAboutWe
See all posts on eHarmony See all posts on Luv@FirstTweet
See all posts on OkCupid See all posts on Soul2Match
See all posts on POF.com See all posts on TheJMom
See all posts on MeetMoi See all posts on Sparkology
OPW – Feb 14 – One of our Power User Panel members noticed some ASPCA ads on the logout/exit page from Match.com. "Hey Mark, how would you like to see these faces everyday when you log in and out of Match? Now don't get me wrong, I love animals and I donate to several "no kill" shelters here in Chicago but these ads for the ASPCA have been going on for almost 2 weeks. I think it's in bad taste not to mention depressing. But hey, to Match advertising revenue is advertising revenue right? I'm sure they could care less what the customer thinks…lol."
Response…
"I did think about that, but I donate to "Pets In Need", PAWS, and "Save A Pet" by check only. None of them even have my email address nor have I ever been to any of thier websites. So that's not it."
What do you think? Your comments please.
IRISH TIMES – Feb 14 – A European Singles survey found that Irish men are likely to spend €106 on a date, compared to British men, who were likely to spend €60. According to a study conducted by the Oxford Internet Institute last year, one in 16 Irish people surveyed started their relationship online. Services range from the free, such as PlentyofFish.com to subscription-based sites like Match.com. While there are never any guarantees, does a greater financial investment result in a higher success rate? “They know that a paying member is serious about dating,” says Grainne Barry of Another Friend, Ireland’s largest dating site with ~60% of the Irish market share.
by Claire O'Mahony
See full article at Irish Times
See all posts on POF.com
See all posts on Match.com
See all posts on AnotherFriend
