Online Personals Watch: News on the Dating Industry and Business

Business Networking; I'll Introduce You

Forbes -- ...Social networking Web sites like Friendster, Orkut and LinkedIn hit the hype stratosphere last year, pitching their ability to find one a mate or a job. But a more sensible business idea is to sell the Web idea as software to companies to figure out who knows whom, and how well, to close more deals. Why cold-call when someone you know can introduce you? New firms like Spoke Software in Palo Alto, Calif. and Visible Path in New York City let you search address books, in-boxes and call logs of employees, investors, lawyers or anyone you consider part of your company's ecosystem.

American IDC Signs Mktg Company; MyCoffeeDate Reopening

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 29, 2004 -- Pan American Relations to provide corporate communications, marketing and public relations services for American IDC Corporation, developer of online communities, dating sites, portals and custom software. MyCoffeeDate.com, owned by American IDC, will reopen soon in a joint effort with over one million members.

MemberWorks Reports 2004 Q4 Results; Including Lavalife

STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 28, 2004--MemberWorks Incorporated (Nasdaq: MBRS - News) ...reported revenues of $133.2 million, compared to $119.2 million reported in the fiscal 2003 fourth quarter. The fourth quarter 2004 revenues were positively impacted by our acquisition of Lavalife which reported revenues of $17.7 million for the fiscal 2004 fourth quarter.

Loews Cineplex and Lavalife Introduce 'Click at a Flick'

NEW YORK, July 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Loews Cineplex Entertainment Corporation and Lavalife, Inc., a subsidiary of MemberWorks Incorporated (Nasdaq: MBRS), announced today a partnership to expand the online dating experience with an innovative offline program taking place in movie theaters in select cities nationwide. Loews Cineplex and Lavalife will host "Click at a Flick" -- special Wednesday night movie screenings in major metros for singles. Single moviegoers can mingle before the lights go down. Svedka Vodka will provide ice breakers, including an updated version of 'Spin the Bottle' and Tarot Card Readers revealing love-connection futures.

True Teams Up With Clear Channel

DALLAS, July 27 /PRNewswire/ -- ...True has formed a relationship with Clear Channel Entertainment. Throughout the summer the companies will bring millions of music fans across the country closer to their favorite artists and each other...Concert-goers in 16 major US cities will have the opportunity to learn the keys to creating long-lasting relationships at concerts produced by Clear Channel Entertainment...through amusing and entertaining give-aways and collateral as well as "True Hook-ups" -- live dating games that will take place in between acts at various venues...Specific concerts will be announced via radio in each city as well as via ongoing Web promotions at http://www.true.com/EventsCalendar.htm...True members will enjoy special VIP access to more than 200 live performances at more than 20 venues and live club events. In addition members can access real-time information regarding Clear Channel Entertainment concerts at True.com and True's Web site will receive prominent placement on the Clear Channel Web site (http://www.cc.com).

Userplane Introduces Flash-Based Web Chat

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 27, 2004--Userplane.com, a pioneer in...Flash-based instant messaging...for Web-based communities, today announced Userplane Web Chat, a multi-user web text chat room system...Latest deployment on Connexion.org social networking community.

MySpace.com Pulls Ahead of Social Networking Rivals

LOS ANGELES, July 27 /PRNewswire/ -- MySpace.com, a leading web portal built to mobilize people around shared interests, today announced its monthly traffic numbers. According to Nielsen//NetRatings June home and work traffic report, MySpace had almost twice the number of unique visitors of its closest competitor, Friendster.

True Filters Two-Timers

SAN JOSE, Calif. — AP -- True helps its love seekers avoid the sleazily married by filtering philanderers...Of course, people seeking extramarital bliss have other options: Yahoo and MSN even have online chat groups dedicated to the "married and flirting." ...True's screening system, which crosschecks "hundreds of millions" of public and proprietary records, isn't foolproof, Vest acknowledged. Then again, neither is love.

eHarmony Matches Soul Mates Around the Globe

PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 27, 2004--...Since its inception in 2000, people from over 228 countries are being successfully matched...The top five member bases are in the U.S., Canada, India, the United Kingdom, and Nigeria with smaller memberships found in far reaching countries such as Kenya, Brazil, Poland, Zimbabwe, and Israel...Four and a half million users.

Women Say Single Life Is Better?

BERLIN (Reuters) - More than 80% of single German women are perfectly happy without a man in tow and say living solo gives them more freedom to do what they want, according to a survey for Stern magazine. Coming amid mounting political alarm about Germany's low birthrate and aging population, the survey of 1,003 women showed only 2% did not enjoy their solitary lifestyle and 36% opted to stay single because it was more fun. Almost half the women said they preferred single life because it was easier to keep their homes tidy and 36% said with no man on the scene they didn't have to endure watching sports on television. MYWAY NEWS

Battery Ventures Promotes Friendster VC to Partner

WELLESLEY, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 22, 2004 -- Roger Lee joined Battery's San Mateo office in 2001 and focuses on software investments. Roger is currently a board member at Friendster and was a board observer at Neoteris prior to its acquisition by NetScreen...Most recently, he was a co-founder of Corio...Also the co-founder and President of NetMarket...Roger graduated with distinction from Yale University with a BA in Political Science...Battery Ventures is focused on investing in technology companies at all stages of growth....Team of over 25 experienced investment professionals...Guides companies to category dominance....Manages over $1.6 billion in committed capital.

Match/Gallup Survey Finds Single Voters Favor Kerry, Oppose Same-Sex Marriage and Believe the War in Iraq Was Not Worth the Price

DALLAS, July 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Match.com, the global leader in online dating, today released key findings from its recently commissioned Gallup survey of American singles;elephone survey of 1,001 American singles from across the country...49% want to see Kerry win the next election, 35% Bush...57% say Iraq war not worth the cost...41% support gay marriage being recognised by law as valid.

TRUE Sets the Standard in Online Dating, Becoming the First Service to Provide Verification of Members' Single Status

DALLAS, July 22 /PRNewswire/ -- In a recent survey of single females ages 18-34 conducted by Russell Research, results showed that 85% of those polled would be more likely to use an online dating site that prescreens members against public records to ensure members are not married, when compared to other online dating sites...TRUE today announced it is expanding its relationship with Rapsheets, America's largest source of criminal records on the Internet, to execute Single Verification(TM) on www.True.com...TRUE becomes the first online relationship service to provide this critical screening for its members.

Webdate Launches Webdate Mobile

MIAMI, July 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Webdate today announced it will launch its mobile webdating service on U.S. Cellular to enable mobile access to dating profiles, chat and real-time messaging through members' wireless phones...Webdate Mobile is powered by the Trilibis mCE, a flexible software engine that extends the connectivity and content of online communities to virtually any wireless device.

Virginia Joins Texas and Ohio as the Third State to Support TRUE's Nationwide Safety Campaign

DALLAS, July 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Less than two weeks after launching its national legislation campaign seeking to protect online daters from interacting with sexual predators and criminals, today TRUE announced that it has secured legislative support in a third key state, Virginia, joining Texas and Ohio. Said Herb Vest, CEO and founder of TRUE. "As an industry, we have an obligation to increase the safety of our customers to the greatest extent possible..."

24/7 Real Media Signs Knot.com and Date.com for Ad Serving

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 20, 2004-- 24/7 Real Media, Inc. (Nasdaq: TFSM), a pioneer in interactive marketing and technology, today announced Knot.com and Date.com chosen Open AdStream as the exclusive ad serving solution for their Web sites. TheKnot.com; world leading wedding media and services companies. Date.com; dating site with more than two million members.

eHarmony; Members Top 'Must Haves' and 'Can't Stands'

PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 19--When it comes to choosing desirable qualities, men and women have more in common than one would think...Laughter is key to a good relationship...Singles seek affection. Emotional health is key. All singles agree on what they don't want: Characteristics such as lying, cheating, and infidelity.

Woman Uses Website to Advertise for Husband

Adrants.com -- New Jersey native Blaire Allison wants to get married by the end of 2004 and she's using a website called Do You Know My Husband? and weblog to hunt for a husband. Allison, who is 27 and works in New York as an event planner and dating coach, launched her site on June 21 and has received hundreds of emails from men clamoring for her consideration as well as major press coverage from the likes of the New York Times and MSNBC...Allison keeps a weblog detailing her dating experience with potential husbands and allows visitors to vote for their husband of choice. MARRYBLAIRE.com

Divorce: The Most Expensive Life Event

WINNIPEG, July 16 /CNW/ -  A new poll of 160 divorced Canadians shows that a majority believe divorce is the most financially expensive event that can happen in a person's life and yet many of the poll respondents were ill-prepared to handle this aspect of the break-up...61% of women agreed it was fair that assets should be split equally compared to 41% of men...22% say that money issues contributed to their divorce. Another 24% said it was "somewhat" a contributing factor...61% agree divorce is the most financially expensive event that can happen in a person's life...57% said that newlyweds should have a pre-nuptial...79% agree that it is better to have "loved and lost" than "never to have loved at all."

True; Millions of Singles Could Be Using Flawed Compatibility Tests

DALLAS, PRNewswire -- ...The research, which will be presented this week at the iDate 2004 inaugural conference in Nice, France, set out to explore and analyze the psychometric reliability and validity of the testing methods used by such services as eHarmony, Match.com, PerfectMatch.com and Tickle.com, among others. With the sole exception of True, no online dating service makes available any independent verification for the scientific basis of its testing methodology, evidence of the success of its tests, or any other information which may be used to measure or evaluate the validity of the methods employed to determine compatibility among singles. In light of these findings, True believes that industry standards must be developed and implemented to ensure reliability and validity of online psychological tests, thereby protecting online dating services from challenges to the quality and accuracy of their assessments.