Online Personals Watch: News on the Dating Industry and Business

Online LDS Dating Sites Grow In Popularity

UNIVERSE - Jan 10 - More and more Latter-day Saint members have found success with online dating, through numerous sites including LDSSingles.com, Match.com and Plentyoffish.com. Arielle Schechtman, director of Spark Networks, the company that owns sites such as LDSSingles and ChristianMingle, said members of the LDS Church would likely be surprised at the number of people who have met their spouse online.

by Chelsey Saatkamp
See full article at Universe

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Spark Networks Donates $32,000 To Tuesday's Children

MARKETWIRE - Dec 22 - Spark Networks, owner and operator of dozens of online communities including JDate.com and ChristianMingle.com, is sharing the love by donating ~$32K to Tuesday's Children, a non-profit family service organization committed to serving those impacted by the events of September 11, 2001 and terrorist incidents worldwide.

See full article at MarketWatch

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Dating Stocks To Go Steady With

SMART MONEY - Dec 12 - Of singles over 18 years old, 43% have browsed online dating sites, equating to 40M active U.S. accounts and ~600M visits per month, according to Mashable. Several publicly traded companies compete for online daters. But just like dates themselves, not all are worth your time or investment dollars. The strongest stock also happens to be the biggest. IAC/InterActiveCorp dominates the category with a 20% market share, according to Online Personals Watch. Significantly smaller but potentially more lucrative than IAC is Spark Networks. Last month, Spark Networks reported a 28% boost in YOY revenue and a 30% increase in paying subscribers. While the U.S. has over 40M active online dating accounts, China has more than three times that amount. Jiayuan.com, China's largest dating site, listed on the NASDAQ in May. Despite doubling the number of active paying accounts since 2010, the stock has cratered in the past month.

by Jonathan Hoenig
See full article at Smart Money

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Spark Networks Reports Third Quarter 2011 Financial Results

MARKET WIRE - Nov 11 - Revenue grew 28% YOY and 6% compared to last quarter, marking our fourth consecutive quarter of revenue growth," said Greg Liberman, Spark's CEO. Revenue for the Q3 was $12.7M. Jewish Networks revenue was $6.7M, a decrease of 1% YOY. Average paying subscribers for Jewish Networks were 88,976, a decrease of 1% YOY.  Average paying subscribers for Other Affinity Networks were 113,972, an increase of 84% YOY.

See full article at Market Watch

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Second Love at First Click

NY TIMES - Oct 6 - Now, people 55 and older are visiting dating sites more than any other age group — up 39% in the last three years, according to Experian Hitwise. Greg Liberman, CEO of Spark Networks said that for the first eight months of this year, Spark had a 93% YOY increase in new members 50+ across all of its dating sites. Niche sites like SilverSingles and OurTime (which also includes dating profiles from SeniorPeopleMeet.com and SeniorsMeet.com) are capitalizing on the demand.

by Stephanie Rosenbloom
See full article at NY Times

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jDate's Success - Infographic

OPW - Oct 1 - According to a study commissioned by SparkNetworks, jDate is responsible for more Jewish marriages than all other dating sites combined. 5 out of 9 Jews who married since 2008 used a dating site in their search for love. See the infographic.

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Spark Networks Q2 2011 Financial Results

PRESS RELEASE - Aug 12 - Revenue for the Q2 '11 was $12.0M, an increase of 17% compared to $10.3M for the Q2 '10, and an increase of 9% compared to $11.0M in the prior quarter. Revenue for Jewish Networks was $6.73M, an increase of 1% compared to $6.66M YOY. Average paying subscribers for Jewish Networks were 90,094 , an increase of 1% YOY.

See full article at 4-Traders

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Spark Networks Reports First Quarter 2011 Financial Results

MARKETWIRE - May 12 - Spark Networks, Inc., has reported financial numbers for Q1 2011. Revenues increase from $10.5 million in Q1 2010 to $11 million in Q1 2011. Spark Networks reported an 8% sequential increase in overall revenue, the largest quarter over quarter revenue growth in 5 years. Jewish Networks saw a 2% increase in average paying subscribers, while the company's Other Affinity Networks saw a revenue increase of 35%, average paying subscribers up 26%, and ARPU up 11%.

See full article at Marketwire

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Greg Liberman Named President & CEO Of Spark Networks

MARKETWIRE - Apr 12 - Adam Berger, who joined Spark as a board member in 2006 and then served as its Chairman and CEO since 2007, has resigned his positions but will remain with Spark as a director. Mr. Liberman has served as Spark's President since 2006, its COO since 2005 and joined the company as its General Counsel in 2004.

See full article at Marketwire

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Spark Networks Reports Q4 2010 Financial Results

MARKETWIRE - Mar 10 - Revenue for the Q4 '10 was $10.1M, a decrease of 9% compared to $11.1M for the Q4 '09, and an increase of 2% compared to $9.9M in the prior quarter. Revenue for the full year of 2010 was $40.9M, a 10% decrease YOY. Average paying subscribers in the Q4 '10 were 160,744, a decrease of 5% compared to 168,646 for the Q4 '09 and a 1% increase compared to 158,422 for the prior quarter. For more details, download Spark Networks' Financials PDF or or visit the link on the side bar under 'FINANCIALS'.

See full article at NewsyStocks

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JDate Slaps Zoosk, OkCupid, And 2RedBeans With Patent Lawsuit Over Secret Admiring

TECH CRUNCH - Mar 13 - JDate has filed a patent lawsuit against 2RedBeans, Zoosk, and OKCupid. JDate alleges that all three companies are infringing the same patent, which states that Sparks Networks (JDate’s parent company) has invented a method or apparatus for automating the process of confidentially determining whether people feel mutual attraction or have mutual interests. JDate has a patent on detecting secret crushes. The suit calls out OkCupid’s QuickMatch, Zoosk’s Scientific Matching Service, and 2RedBean’s Secret Admire function as infringing JDate-owned patent # 5,950,200, titled “Method and Apparatus for Detection Of Reciprocal Interests or Feelings And Subsequent Notification.” Spark Networks wants the three companies to pay damages to JDate for the infringement.

by Leena Rao
See full article at Tech Crunch

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Spark Networks Reports Third Quarter 2010 Financial Results

PRESS RELEASE - Nov 10 - Spark Networks' revenue for the Q3 '10 was $9.9M, a decrease of 10% compared to $11.1M for the Q3 '09, and a decrease of 4% compared to $10.3M in the prior quarter.  Net income  was $1.2M, compared to $1.0M in Q3 '09. Jewish Networks revenue was $6.8M, a 4% decrease YOY. Other Affinity Networks revenue was $2.7M, a decrease of 14% YOY. General Market Networks revenu was $264,000, a decrease of 54% YOY. For more details, download Spark Networks Financials PDF or or visit the link on the side bar under 'FINANCIALS'. FULL ARTICLE @ MARKET WATCH

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7 Cities, 9 Flights, 2 Week North American Tour

OPW - Nov 10 - I started my tour by jetting off to London to keynote at the White Label Dating / Global Personals annual partner conference. It was fascinating getting the inside-track on the company, attending their two day conference. They've had a tough year beating off scammers, and then elevating their conversion factors to new highs. They've done some especially innovative work turning their customer service department into a profit center. Next, Toronto, to meet with Justin and Annabelle of Fastlife.com. I paid Noel at Avid Life Media. The Toronto IDEA soiree went very well. In L.A. a visit with Spark Networks, and then eHarmony to meet the CEO and tour the eHarmony Labs. Absolutely fascinating!  Its so nice to see some true primary research coming from an internet matchmaking company. I ran a little IDEA soiree in L.A. A quick trip to Palm Springs next, to pay Conciant a visit. They have an interesting offering in the works for idating companies. San Francisco next, to visit Zoosk. I first met Jeff at iDate Miami 2004. He was one of the best speakers the conference has ever had the pleasure of hosting. In Dallas, Mandy is driving Match.com to new heights. $106 million last quarter. I caught up with Trish from TRUE. It will be a nice acquisition target in a year or so. - Mark Brooks

Read an extended post on Seasonal Paradise.

Looking For Mr. Goodbuyer

ONLINE BARRONS - Sep 18 - JDate, a dating site for Jewish singles, is a hit with its clientele, but its parent company is a bust with the shareholders. Spark shares are languishing~$3 a share, amid disappointing financial results and after a proposed buyout at $3.10 a share earlier this year by the company's largest holder, Great Hill Equity Partners, was rejected by a special committee of the board. Spark shares look reasonably priced, based on the company's profits, solid balance sheet and JDate's franchise value. Osmium Partners, an investment firm that owns 6.7% of Spark, opposed the Great Hill bid, arguing Spark's intrinsic value exceeds $6 a share. "Spark is highly undervalued, and it would be a nice fit for an acquirer at the right price", says John Lewis, a principal at Osmium. In 2009, JDate generated $29M in revenue. While that was 63% of Spark's sales, it's a small fraction of the $1 billion in annual revenue generated by the online dating industry, which is dominated by eHarmony and Match.com. In contrast, general dating sites spend heavily on TV and Web ads. eHarmony may spend $125M on marketing and advertising, or more than 40% of its estimated $280M in 2010 revenue. JDate spends as little as 5% to 10% of sales on marketing and advertising. FULL ARTICLE @ ONLINE BARRONS    

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Spark Networks Launches New Content Site

MARKET WIRE - Aug 24 - Spark Networks is launching Believe.com, a new faith-based content destination serving the Christian community. "Based upon member feedback, it became clear there was a need for a content destination site where devoted Christians could obtain advice, insights and interaction with other community members," said Garry Poole, Advisory Board Member of ChristianMingle.com, which is owned and operated by Spark Networks. FULL ARTICLE @ PR INSIDE

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Spark Networks Reports Second Quarter 2010 Financial Results

MARKET WIRE - Aug 12 - Revenue for Q2 2010 was $10.3M, a decrease of 8% compared to $11.2M for Q2 2009, and a decrease of 2% compared to $10.5M in the prior quarter. Net income for Q2 2010 was $923,000, or $0.04 per share, compared to $1.9M, or $0.09 per share, for Q2 2009. Average paying subscribers for the Company, as a whole, decreased 2% YOY to 160,239. Revenue for Jewish Networks was $6.7M a decrease of 6%. Revenue for Other Affinity Networks was $2.8M, a decrease of 16%. Revenue for General Market Networks was $298,000, a decrease of 57%. Average paying subscribers for Jewish Networks were 89,055, an increase of 8% compared to Q2 2009. FULL ARTICLE @ TRADING MARKETS

Mark Brooks: JDate up, everything else down. You can see a detailed overview of Spark's trending numbers on the right bar under Financial Pages. We also list Match, Meetic and Snap Interactive and will be listing EasyDate soon.

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As Dating Pool Shrinks, Love Matches Grow

ABC NEWS - June 18 - Spark boasts 32 dating sites in all. Adam Berger, CEO of the Spark Networks, calls it "niche" dating. "Niche dating makes people instantly feel comfortable," said Berger. "They're among people who are just like themselves in many different ways." JDate, which caters to Jewish singles, is Spark Networks' most successful and popular web site. It claims 750,000 active users. While JDate may be the most well-known of the dating web sites, Spark's other niche web sites are booming. "ChristianMingle has probably been one of the sites that's grown faster than any other lately," said Berger. Subscriptions to Spark Networks sites cost from $9.99 to $39.99. The company maintains call centers where Spark representatives help love-starved subscribers find ways to improve their profiles and dates. The center takes more than 1,700 calls a day. FULL ARTICLE @ ABC NEWS

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Spark Networks' Q1 2010 Financial Results

MARKET WIRE - May 14 - Revenue for the Q1' 10 was $10.5M, a decrease of 12% compared to $12.0M for the Q1'09. Q1' 10 revenue for Jewish Networks was $7.1M, a decrease of 7%, for General Market Networks was $370,000, a decrease of 61%, for Other Affinity Networks was $3.0 M, a decrease of 10%, for Offline & Other Businesses was $113,000, a decrease of 47%. Average paying subscribers for Jewish Networks were 93,235, Other Affinity Networks has 68,124 subscribers and General Market Networks has 7,813 subscribers. FULL ARTICLE @ MARKET WATCH

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Date Site Operator To Play The Field

LA BUSINESS JOURNAL - Apr 26 - Spark Networks turned down a March 2 offer from Great Hill Equity Partners III, a Boston-based private equity fund that owns 44% of Spark, to buy the rest of the company for $3.10 per share. The bid represented a 5% premium to Spark’s March 1 closing price of $2.95 and valued the company at $64M. The offer was widely denounced as low ball for Spark, which owns 29 niche dating sites, including JDate.com. Osmium Partners, another fund that owns 6.1% of Spark, called the deal “grossly inadequate” and vowed to fight any offer less than $6 a share. Shares have since risen, closing at $3.59 on April 22. Mark Brooks, editor of OnlinePersonalsWatch.com and a dating service consultant, believes the Great Hill valuation was probably about right – for now. “I think the valuation is pretty solid at $3.10,” Brooks said. However, he believes that Spark can do better. “I know the management at Spark Networks and they are smart people. Someone is going to acquire them,” he said. “They have a hallmark brand and they think they can do better once the market picks up.” The decline in Spark’s business corresponds to a slump in the entire online dating sector, as paid providers face new competition from free dating sites and social networks such as Facebook, Brooks said. FULL ARTICLE @ LA BUSINESS JOURNAL

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Spark Networks Rejects Proposal From Great Hill Equity Partners

MARKET WATCH - Apr 6 - Spark Networks announced today that the Special Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company has unanimously rejected the March 2, 2010 proposal by Great Hill Equity Partners III, LP and certain of its affiliates to purchase all of the outstanding shares of common stock of the Company not owned by Great Hill for $3.10 per share and will continue to consider all other strategic alternatives available to the Company. FULL ARTICLE @ MARKET WATCH

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