Category: Outlets – Reuters

Muslim, Traditional, but Finding Love on the Web

Posted on May 1, 2007

SinglemuslimREUTERS — May 1 — Over the past two years there has been a boom in the use of Web sites that introduce Muslim men and women for marriage. Singlemuslim.com , which calls itself Britain's largest Muslim introductions agency, has seen registered users double over the past year to 100,000 and is opening sites in the U.S., Canada and Australia. On some sites, more than half the registered users are professional women with above-average incomes who use the service to save time and broaden the scope of their search. They are direct and demanding about what they are looking for. Shaadi.com, 'the world's largest matrimonial service,' has 10 million users, most in South Asia — in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. In Britain, 700,000 are registered, 40% average annual income of 40,000 pounds.

The full article was originally published at NY Times, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: BharatMatrimony.com is Shaadi's leading competitor, and WorldSingles.com runs a number of niche dating sites focused on Muslims.

Muslim, Traditional, but Finding Love on the Web

Posted on May 1, 2007

SinglemuslimREUTERS — May 1 — Over the past two years there has been a boom in the use of Web sites that introduce Muslim men and women for marriage. Singlemuslim.com , which calls itself Britain's largest Muslim introductions agency, has seen registered users double over the past year to 100,000 and is opening sites in the U.S., Canada and Australia. On some sites, more than half the registered users are professional women with above-average incomes who use the service to save time and broaden the scope of their search. They are direct and demanding about what they are looking for. Shaadi.com, 'the world's largest matrimonial service,' has 10 million users, most in South Asia — in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. In Britain, 700,000 are registered, 40% average annual income of 40,000 pounds.

The full article was originally published at NY Times, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: BharatMatrimony.com is Shaadi's leading competitor, and WorldSingles.com runs a number of niche dating sites focused on Muslims.

Viacom Sues YouTube/Google for $1 Billion

Posted on March 13, 2007

Logo_youtubeREUTERS — Mar 13 — Viacom sued Google/YouTube for $1 billion on Tuesday for ‘massive intentional copyright infringement.’ NBC Universal and News Corp. have also criticized YouTube’s copyright protection policies but stopped short of legal action. Viacom is seeking an injunction against further violations as well as damages. Google said it was confident that YouTube respects the copyrights at issue in the Viacom case.  The decision to sue Google followed "a great deal of unproductive negotiation," Viacom said. Viacom and peers like NBC Universal are also investing heavily in their own Internet video sites.

Mark Brooks: Can someone peel the blinkers off Google‘s eyes. How is YouTube that different from Napster?  YouTube’s best bet for survival is to be proactive in preventing copyrighted material from being uploaded.

Viacom Sues YouTube/Google for $1 Billion

Posted on March 13, 2007

Logo_youtubeREUTERS — Mar 13 — Viacom sued Google/YouTube for $1 billion on Tuesday for ‘massive intentional copyright infringement.’ NBC Universal and News Corp. have also criticized YouTube’s copyright protection policies but stopped short of legal action. Viacom is seeking an injunction against further violations as well as damages. Google said it was confident that YouTube respects the copyrights at issue in the Viacom case.  The decision to sue Google followed "a great deal of unproductive negotiation," Viacom said. Viacom and peers like NBC Universal are also investing heavily in their own Internet video sites.

Mark Brooks: Can someone peel the blinkers off Google‘s eyes. How is YouTube that different from Napster?  YouTube’s best bet for survival is to be proactive in preventing copyrighted material from being uploaded.

Friendster Makes Google Ad and Search Supplier

Posted on March 7, 2007

Friendster_logo_1REUTERS — Mar 7 — The plan calls for text and display advertising to run on Friendster members’ (~37 million registered users in ~75 countries) personal profile sites, worldwide, and the company will introduce Google Web search across the site in the second quarter of 2007. The deal replaces a prior search deal with Yahoo. Four out of five of Friendster’s top markets are in Southeast Asia: Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia rank No. 1, 2 and 3. The United States is fourth, while Singapore is fifth. 45% of Friendster’s audience is in Asia now.

Friendster Makes Google Ad and Search Supplier

Posted on March 7, 2007

Friendster_logo_1REUTERS — Mar 7 — The plan calls for text and display advertising to run on Friendster members’ (~37 million registered users in ~75 countries) personal profile sites, worldwide, and the company will introduce Google Web search across the site in the second quarter of 2007. The deal replaces a prior search deal with Yahoo. Four out of five of Friendster’s top markets are in Southeast Asia: Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia rank No. 1, 2 and 3. The United States is fourth, while Singapore is fifth. 45% of Friendster’s audience is in Asia now.

USA Love Brokers Eye China

Posted on February 16, 2007
Asian_dating_3REUTERS — Feb 13 — Match.com has secured Love21CN.com , one of China's biggest online dating service providers, as its main target for a potential stake purchase or business partnership. eHarmony is also looking at potential partners in China. In November, China.com said it would team up with Meetic for business promotion. Meetic in July also launched a localized Chinese site called "Mi Tang," or "Sweetie" in English. A Meetic-led venture capital consortium is also expected to invest $20 million in Yeeyoo.  iResearch expects the Chinese online personals market revenue to grow by ~60% annually to 653 million yuan ($84.21 million) by 2008.  MySpace will launch in China within months. GSR Ventures and U.S. fund Mayfield jointly invested $2 million in "Baihe" — "Lily" in English — in late 2005.  In December, Baihe began charging 1,980 yuan per person for its high-end "Golden" service.  Most Chinese dating sites are free.
Mark Brooks: I have an interview with the CEO of Baihe.com lined up for OPW in March. Online dating has a casual connotation in China and is often referred to as 'friends-making.' The Asian internet dating conference is scheduled for May in Shanghai. See idate2007.com. 

USA Love Brokers Eye China

Posted on February 16, 2007
Asian_dating_3REUTERS — Feb 13 — Match.com has secured Love21CN.com , one of China's biggest online dating service providers, as its main target for a potential stake purchase or business partnership. eHarmony is also looking at potential partners in China. In November, China.com said it would team up with Meetic for business promotion. Meetic in July also launched a localized Chinese site called "Mi Tang," or "Sweetie" in English. A Meetic-led venture capital consortium is also expected to invest $20 million in Yeeyoo.  iResearch expects the Chinese online personals market revenue to grow by ~60% annually to 653 million yuan ($84.21 million) by 2008.  MySpace will launch in China within months. GSR Ventures and U.S. fund Mayfield jointly invested $2 million in "Baihe" — "Lily" in English — in late 2005.  In December, Baihe began charging 1,980 yuan per person for its high-end "Golden" service.  Most Chinese dating sites are free.
Mark Brooks: I have an interview with the CEO of Baihe.com lined up for OPW in March. Online dating has a casual connotation in China and is often referred to as 'friends-making.' The Asian internet dating conference is scheduled for May in Shanghai. See idate2007.com.