PRESS RELEASE – Aug 27 – Spark Networks, the parent of Zoosk, EliteSingles, Jdate, Christian Mingle, eDarling, JSwipe, and SilverSingles, reported H1 2020 revenue of €103.4, an increase of €54.2M from €49.2M in the H1 of 2019. The increase is primarily attributable to the integration of Zoosk following the Spark Networks / Zoosk Merger in July 2019. Net Loss was €0.4M, an improvement of €4.5M compared to Net Loss of €4.9M in the H1 of 2019. Average paying subscribers increased to 915K in the H1 of 2020, compared to 445K in the same period of 2019.
Category: Zoosk
Zoosk Faces California Privacy Law Claim After Hack
BLOOMBERG LAW – July 24 – Zoosk's users are accusing the dating app in a California federal court of violating a state privacy law by failing to protect their information from a hack earlier this year. The class action was filed July 22 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
Hackers Are Selling 73M User Records, Including Zoosk’s
by Catalin Cimpanu
See full article at ZDNet
Mark Brooks: I asked Eric Eichmann, the CEO of Spark Networks for comment on this. He said, "Data safety and customer security are top priorities for Zoosk and for Spark Networks. As such, we are taking this weekend's news of a potential data attack extremely seriously. We have opened an investigation into the claim and will be working with external advisors and the appropriate authorities to assess validity. We will take all relevant measures that are necessary to ensure the integrity and protection of any user data, including those of a preventive nature."
Lessons Learned From Starting Zoosk During the 2008 Recession
ENTREPRENEUR – APR 10 – Shayan Zadeh and Alex Mehr co-founded the online dating company Zoosk during the 2008 recession. They were running it for 10 years before selling it for ~$300M. They now lead an online retailer Dressbarn with their business partner, Tai Lopez, and invest in or advise other ventures.
Q: What are you more skilled at than most people in the world?
Shayan Zadeh: Starting Zoosk during the 2008 economic collapse taught us many lessons for the current COVID-19 crisis. Most people are shell-shocked during a crisis and don't take action. We utilize data to make quick decisions and optimize businesses. With this mentality, you can quickly spot opportunities, test ideas, experiment and pivot while keeping a lean team.
Q: What was your biggest, most painful failure?
Alex Mehr: We started Zoosk as a market research tool. We struggled to gain traction until we stumbled upon the idea of doing online dating differently. So we pivoted, but it wasn't easy. Remove your ego, acknowledge your mistakes and identify a solution.
Q: What's the biggest common leadership mistake?
Shayan Zadeh: Overplanning. Very few people predicted the ramification of COVID-19. It's easy to get analysis paralysis, especially now. Get out of overthinking, make a move, get feedback and adjust as needed.
Q: How do you prevent burnout?
Shayan Zadeh: A solid support network is critical. Carve out time for yourself and your family.
Q: What are you working on right now?
Alex Mehr: Laying the foundation for Dressbarn's growth. We're also focused on our team. We have three offices across the country and contractors overseas. Decentralization with virtual working has its challenges, but it's working and becoming the standard out of necessity due to current events.
Today Is the Busiest Day of the Year
ZOOSK – Jan 5 – Today is "Dating Sunday", first Sunday in January which is the busiest day of the year for online dating. Dating app Zoosk is anticipating that the number of messages sent in the US alone will hit the 1.5M mark. For singles looking to truly make the most of the day, the best time to get online is in the evening. Women, in particular, experience the biggest activity boost. In 2019, women's activity uplift was double that of men's on Zoosk. Zoosk's CMO Luciana Telles says that it comes down to perfect timing. She explains: "Dating Sunday falls during a time period when singles are extra motivated to look for online connections. It's the first weekend after New Year's Eve, which means that people have not only set themselves New Year's resolutions, they've had a few days to think about how to put them into practice. Additionally, it's about 6 weeks out from Valentine's Day, meaning that singles who spark something on Jan 5 have plenty of time left to lock down a date for Feb 14."
This Is the Hottest Time of Year for Online Dating
MARKETWATCH – Dec 31 – For many singles, the holidays are the loneliest time of year and, in the New Year, the $3B dating industry sees a surge in users. Zoosk typically sees a 20% jump in users in the first two weeks of the year and eHarmony sees a similar increase in mobile registrations since the holidays. Grindr usually experiences a 30%-plus increase in users over the holiday season. Match.com and OKCupid also see an uptick between Christmas and Valentine's Day. "Many singles sit around the family dinner table during the holidays and think, 'Maybe it would be better to have a partner," says Mark Brooks, a dating-industry analyst and the editor of Online Personals Watch. "That's when they start hitting dating sites in droves and go on dates before the indigestion sets in."
by Quentin Fottrell
See full article at Marketwatch
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Former CEO of Zoosk and Tai Buy Dressbarn
Top Dating News – Match, Zoosk Layoffs and London Dating Conference
OPW – Oct 1 – Here's the top dating news in ~2 minutes. Subscribe to Two Minute Tuesdays (TMT) on Youtube (and turn on notifications) or to the podcast on Breaker, Google podcasts, Spotify, Anchor.
Zoosk to Make Major Layoffs and Exit City
SF BUSINESS TIMES – Oct 1 – Zoosk is facing two massive rounds of layoffs this year and next, before its German-based parent company Spark Networks moves the operation out of San Francisco. Spark Networks acquired Zoosk earlier this year in a deal valued at $255M. The company wrote in a letter to shareholders that it plans to slash 66% of its workforce by the end of this year. It will then institute another round of layoffs to cut 80% of the workforce by April, with the company fully exiting San Francisco by the end of June as a cost-cutting move. It is not clear how many employees currently work for Zoosk. However, in 2017, Zoosk had 93 employees.
Open Letter to the Shareholders of Spark Networks
BUSINESS WIRE – Sep 30 – We have closed our largest acquisition (Zoosk) to date which has accelerated our expansion in North America. Shares of Spark have lost more than a third of their value thus far in 2019 and over 50% since the deal closed on July 1, 2019. The losses are largely the result of concentrated share sales by a minority of our shareholder base and not the result of financial or operational under-performance. Since the close of the Zoosk transaction, ~5M Spark shares have traded, representing 20% of our total shares outstanding. Spark Networks is active in the market of serious relationships. Through the acquisitions of Jdate, JSwipe, and Christian Mingle, Attractive World in France, and Zoosk, the company has quadrupled its revenue from €60M in 2015 to €250M on a pro forma basis in 2018.
Our strategy:
- Phase 1: Reach critical scale to unlock profitability potential
- Phase 2: Consolidate the serious dating segment and build a profitable core
- Phase 3: New Growth Initiatives