Category: Uncategorized

THE DEAL — Jul 19 — News Corp.'s $580 million acquisition of Intermix Media Inc. and MySpace.com yesterday could spark some renewed interest in this once-hot Internet sector. "Media companies tend to keep a close eye on what the others are doing. With a purchase like this, you can't help but believe that other media companies will be looking closer at other social networking sites," said Brad Bowers of BlackInc Ventures LLC. The acquisition will boost the valuation of other social networking companies. August Capital partner David Hornik, an investor in Tickle, argued the increased ability of online companies to monetize their viewership could lead to more consolidation. Last year, Barry Diller's IAC agreed to pay an undisclosed amount for ZeroDegrees Inc.

Mark Brooks: How long did it take Yahoo and Amazon and Match to become profitable? The leading social networking sites will make money aplenty. Users will demand value added premium services in time, and be willing to pay for the conveniences. Huge viral traffic volumes are keeping the major players afloat with healthy advertising fees right now.

PR WEB –July 15 — Everyone has a right to love and be loved regardless of age, size, color or creed. Sadly many people do not achieve this. Amongst these are large people who, perhaps through various experiences in their lives have been bullied, teased, humiliated and discriminated against have lost their self confidence and have low self esteem and are embarrassed or even scared to go out into the social world to meet people. Enter Truly Plumptious.

Mark Brooks: BBPeoplemeet.com, BBWfinder.com, BBWpersonalsplus.com, are the top sites in the big and beautiul online personals niche.  It's a significant niche, and destined to continue growing…until we find that magic diet pill.

MEDIA POST — Jul 19 — LinkedIn.com (2.4 million users) will release a third Web-based premium service today: a directory system for groups and organizations such as companies, conferences, and alumni associations. The new service allows groups to set up directories which LinkedIn members can join. Basic LinkedIn Groups functions are available for free, but for a fee, members of the group will have the group’s logo displayed on their profile, linking back to the group’s main page. Additional premium features center around accelerating the approval process for adding group members. The company hopes to be profitable by the first quarter of 2006. FULL ARTICLE @ MEDIA POST

Mark Brooks: Linkedin rocks! Reid Hoffman , CEO/Founder, was also an early investor in Friendster and was EVP at Paypal.

HONOLULU ADVERTISER — July 18 — The best matchmakers are those who know the who’s who in society. They even refer to prospective singles as their ‘listings.’  The meeting place usually is a famous five-star hotel or a cafe that’s easy to find and convenient. The matchmaker will introduce the two, make some small talk, then leave.  A variation occurs when introductions are made by a friend or co-worker, in an informal way. This comes with less protocol. FULL ARTICLE @ HONOLULU ADVERTISER

Mark Brooks: Old ways meet new…parents often list their sons and daughters profiles on their behalf on Shaadi.com.

ASSOCIATED PRESS — July 18 — News Corp. will spend $580 million to buy Intermix Media–which recently settled a lawsuit accusing it of distributing spyware. News Corp., a movie studio and television conglomerate, said the move is an effort to expand its Internet offerings. Intermix’s holdings include MySpace.com.  Intermix, which had revenue of $24.1 million Q1 2005, will become part of News Corp.’s newly created Fox Interactive Media. The deal is expected to close in Q4. FULL RELEASE @ YAHOO

REALITY NEWS ONLINE — July 15 — Is anybody truthful in online dating? The answer seems up in the air given that on the first episode of Hooking Up we see not only the men providing slightly untruthful information, but at least one of the women as well! How can Lisa (right) lie so much in her online profile and expect a man to be okay with it? The show opens with several clips of the woman either on their dates or discussing their dates.  One dater says to the camera, “She committed the crime of dating deception.”  Amy says that Chris is a very good kisser, which means she will forgive him for anything. She also tells us that he is going on a date with someone else and she is OK with it. 

The full article was originally published at Reality News Online, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: I propose that online daters on first dates follow the following etiquette for blatant instances of dating deception…politely inform your date they have lied unnecessarily, thank them for their interest in you, and leave.   

REALITY NEWS ONLINE — July 15 — Is anybody truthful in online dating? The answer seems up in the air given that on the first episode of Hooking Up we see not only the men providing slightly untruthful information, but at least one of the women as well! How can Lisa (right) lie so much in her online profile and expect a man to be okay with it? The show opens with several clips of the woman either on their dates or discussing their dates.  One dater says to the camera, “She committed the crime of dating deception.”  Amy says that Chris is a very good kisser, which means she will forgive him for anything. She also tells us that he is going on a date with someone else and she is OK with it. 

The full article was originally published at Reality News Online, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: I propose that online daters on first dates follow the following etiquette for blatant instances of dating deception…politely inform your date they have lied unnecessarily, thank them for their interest in you, and leave.   

PR WEB — July 16 — aeDating offers blogging, 5 new design templates, video and audio file upload.  AEwebworks is a professional software development team specializing solely on dating software.  AEwebworks has provided dating software solutions for over 3 years and installs 4 dating sites per day on average, powering over 1700 online dating sites. FULL RELEASE @ PR WEB

Mark Brooks: Alas, the broken English in the press release doesn't inspire much confidence.  Entrepreneurs can start their own dating site for under $1,000.  Then all they need is $3 million+ to get the site to a critical mass of users. 

PR WEB — July 16 — aeDating offers blogging, 5 new design templates, video and audio file upload.  AEwebworks is a professional software development team specializing solely on dating software.  AEwebworks has provided dating software solutions for over 3 years and installs 4 dating sites per day on average, powering over 1700 online dating sites. FULL RELEASE @ PR WEB

Mark Brooks: Alas, the broken English in the press release doesn't inspire much confidence.  Entrepreneurs can start their own dating site for under $1,000.  Then all they need is $3 million+ to get the site to a critical mass of users. 

NORTHWEST HERALD — July 14 — Young singles today are technologically savvy and many times prefer typing a few consequence-free lines as opposed to calling up a crush.  Kali, 16, said she used her cell phone to text message her boyfriend five or six times a day to find out what he was up to and to plan their dates. According to a Pew Internet and American Life Project survey, 84% of internet users are between 18 and 29, and sending e-mail is the most popular online activity. Michael, 22, is not a big fan of e-mailing people he dates. "It comes across colder in e-mail," he said. "There's no inflection in the text."

The full article was originally published at Northwest Herald, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: Yes, email and IM are quick n easy.  You can maintain communication and stay up to date.  But, you can't build a real relationship without personal contact.  We're going to be stuck in the stone ages on that one for a while courtesy of a little thing called…chemistry.