Online Personals Insider

Internet Dating Insider # 135, February 22nd, 2010

The Online Personals Insider is the internet dating conference weekly news summary

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:~ INTERNET DATING CONFERENCE ~:
VIDEO from Miami 2010: http://www.idate2010.com/eventvideo-miami-2010.php

iDate2010 West is scheduled for June 16-18 at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills.
Register before February 28 and save $700.
http://www.idate2010.com

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:~ TOP ONLINE PERSONALS WATCH NEWS ITEMS ~:

WEEKLY NEWS VIDEO SUMMARY :
- Feb 15th, 2010 (Valentine's Edition)  :  http://tinyurl.com/opwnews28
- Feb 22nd, 2010 : http://tinyurl.com/opwnews29

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Match.com Flirting With Singlesnet

TECH CRUCH - Feb 18 - We’ve heard a rumor that online dating service and IAC property Match.com is acquiring Singlesnet. Match is in the habit of buying up potential competitors. The dating giant scooped up People Media last year for $80M.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/matchcom-flirting-with-singlesnet.html

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eHarmony.com Made ~$250 Million Revenue In 2009

EHARMONY BLOG - Feb 18 - As disclosed by eHarmony to an CNBC interview with Julia Boorstin last Saturday:
    * Close to $250M in revenues in 2009
    * Double digit registration growth in 2009
    * Profitable since 2004
    * eHarmony is currently focused on building itself as an independent business.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/eharmonycom-made-250-million-revenue-in-2009.html

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Stop fraud before it happens!  Learn how to proactively block out scammers before they attempt to defraud or abuse your good customers. Visit iovation.com or call (503) 224-6010 today.

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meetMoi Partners With Time Out New York

PRESS RELEASE - Feb 18 - meetMoi is introducting its white label service with the launch of TONY Singles, a partnership with Time Out New York. The mobile and web-based dating service is powered by meetMoi and went live in conjunction with Time Out New York's Singles issue.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/meetmoi-partners-with-time-out-new-york.html

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OkCupid Scores By Teaching

37SIGNALS - Feb 17 - If you’re a dating site, you’re going up against much bigger competitors, like Match.com, PlentyOfFish and eHarmony. You could spend big bucks on advertising and marketing. But what if you start promoting by teaching? You’ve got a treasure trove of data. That’s exactly what OkCupid has done at its blog with posts like The 4 Big Myths of Profile Pictures, How Your Race Affects The Messages You Get, and Exactly What To Say In A First Message. The blog, which OkCupid started in Oct, has helped get the company’s name out on other blogs and social networks. Since OkCupid started its blog, the number of active site members has grown by ~10%, to 1.1M, according to the company.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/okcupid-scores-by-teaching.html

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Advertise your dating site on Plentyoffish.  Go to ads.pof.com and advertise direct.

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Lovestruck.com Gets An iPhone App

SHINY SHINY - Feb 15 - LoveStruck is a dating site that specialises in hooking up single professionals who work near to each other. Subscription to the full Lovestruck dating service is L24.95 a month. The new iPhone app is free to anyone who has subscribed. Pending approval on the Apple store, the Lovestruck app will be out in a week. Apps for Android and other platforms are on the way too.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/lovestruckcom-gets-an-iphone-app.html

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EasyDate Looking To Raise Cash As Well As Heart-rates

SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY - Feb 14 - An online dating company is considering a flotation as it looks to raise L10M for acquisitions in Europe. EasyDate, chaired by technology entrepreneur Bill Dobbie, is operating in one of the fastest growing sectors of the economy. Dobbie and CEO Max Polyakov are talking to brokers and other advisers, including KPMG and McGrigors, in Scotland and London about raising finance by the early summer. Targets have been identified, mainly in France, but also in the US where the firm already has a 50:50 joint venture. EasyDate was launched in 2002 and last year entered the Deloitte Fast 50 with a five-year growth rate of 1,063% and average monthly revenue growth of 7% in 2009.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/easydate-looking-to-raise-cash-as-well-as-heartrates.html

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Internet Dating Conference
The business conference for the online dating industry @ InternetDatingConference.com

Industry Message Boards @ mb.InternetDatingConference.com

Conference Organiser
 Marc Lesnick, info@idate2010.com, 212-722-1744

Media Relations
 Press, please contact Mark Brooks
 mark@onlinepersonalswatch.com, 212-444-1636

_________________

Online Personals Watch
www.onlinepersonalswatch.com or opw1.com

Editor: Mark Brooks, mark@onlinepersonalswatch.com, 212-444-1636

Internet Dating Insider # 134, February 8th, 2010

The Online Personals Insider is the internet dating conference weekly news summary

______________________________________________________________________

:~ INTERNET DATING CONFERENCE ~:
iDate2010 West is scheduled for June 16-18 at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills.
Register before February 28 and save $700.
http://www.idate2010.com

Photos from the Miami Internet Dating Conference are now up online at the iDate website.
http://www.idate2010.com/eventphotos-miami-2010.php

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:~ TOP ONLINE PERSONALS WATCH NEWS ITEMS ~:

WEEKLY NEWS VIDEO SUMMARY :
- Feb 9th, 2010  :  http://tinyurl.com/opwnews27

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WAYN To Launch Dating Product

TNOOZ - Feb 8 - WAYN, the travel social network, is planning to unveil a dating service on St Valentine’s Day. A new site – WAYNDating.com – is live but has limited functionality, pointing visitors to the launch via a countdown clock. The launch will be revealed at a glitzy party in London on Friday night ahead of the service being switched on this weekend.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/wayn-to-launch-dating-product.html

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Adult Site Operator FriendFinder Shelves IPO

REUTERS - Feb 5 - FriendFinder Networks Inc indefinitely shelved its planned $220M initial public offering on Friday. The company did not say when it might again try to price the IPO, but said in a statement it would not proceed "until market conditions improve." FriendFinder intended to sell 20M shares for between $10 and $20 each and use the proceeds largely to pay down debt. FriendFinder first filed for the IPO in Dec 2008, and initially sought to raise as much as $460M.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/adult-site-operator-friendfinder-shelves-ipo.html

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Stop fraud before it happens!  Learn how to proactively block out scammers before they attempt to defraud or abuse your good customers. Visit iovation.com or call (503) 224-6010 today.

______________________________________________________________________


Meetic And Match Forge Joint Venture In Latin America

PRESS RELEASE - Feb 4 - Meetic and Match.com will contribute their respective properties in South America to the new joint venture: Meetic’s Brazilian site, ParPerfeito, and Match.com’s activities in other South and Latin American countries. Match.com and Meetic will each own 50% of the economic interest in the entity, and Match.com will control the new entity’s operations. Match.com will pay Meetic $3M in cash at the closing, which is expected by March 15, 2010. Meetic’s participation is subject to put-and-call rights that can be triggered beginning in the fourth year, whereby Match could purchase Meetic’s stake at fair market value at that time. An additional payment of $1.5M could be triggered at that time.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/meetic-and-match-forge-joint-venture-in-latin-america.html

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Skyecandy Set To Launch Video Speed Dating Via Skype

PR WEB - Feb 2 - Skyecandy announces a worldwide dating event this Valentine's Day to celebrate the official launch of Skyecandy video speed dating via Skype. Skyecandy matches members for 5 minute video speed dates  Each date runs for five minutes with a minute in between that enables users to vote YES or NO. If both vote YES, they can continue to communicate for free using Skype, in their own time, at their own pace.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/skyecandy-set-to-launch-video-speed-dating-via-skype-.html

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iTelebill – Offering mobile reocurring billing which leads to higher conversions at no additional cost to site. Perfect for members where credit cards are not possible. Visit www.itelebill.com.

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$60 Million Initial Offering For Avid Life Media Delayed

REUTERS - Feb 2 - A planned $60M IPO for Avid Life Media, which runs adult dating websites including one that facilitates extramarital affairs, has been delayed. Avid Life, which was being advised by GMP Capital, had planned to use the funds raised from the offering to acquire another company.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/60-million-initial-offering-for-avid-life-media-delayed.html

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Skout.com To Launch App For iPad

PR WEB - Jan 29 - Skout.com plans to launch a companion dating app for the iPad. The new Skout.com iPad app will not only show you singles nearby who are active and ready to chat, it will also boast a new concept: The HotMap. The Map will display a live overview of where most singles are currently active in your area.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/skoutcom-to-launch-app-for-ipad.html

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Internet Dating Conference
The business conference for the online dating industry @ InternetDatingConference.com

Industry Message Boards @ mb.InternetDatingConference.com

Conference Organiser
 Marc Lesnick, info@idate2010.com, 212-722-1744

Media Relations
 Press, please contact Mark Brooks
 mark@onlinepersonalswatch.com, 212-444-1636

_________________

Online Personals Watch
www.onlinepersonalswatch.com or opw1.com

Editor: Mark Brooks, mark@onlinepersonalswatch.com, 212-444-1636

Internet Dating Insider # 133, February 1st, 2010

The Online Personals Insider is the internet dating conference weekly news summary

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:~ IDATE AWARD WINNERS ~:
The winners of the iDate Awards were announced on January 28 in Miami.  See the winners, the nominees and their votes at:
http://www.idateawards.com


:~ INTERNET DATING CONFERENCE ~:
iDate2010 West is scheduled for June 16-18 at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills.
Register before February 28 and save $700.
http://www.idate2010.com


______________________________________________________________________


:~ TOP ONLINE PERSONALS WATCH NEWS ITEMS ~:

WEEKLY NEWS VIDEO SUMMARY :
- Feb 1st, 2010  :  http://tinyurl.com/opwnews26

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Dating Site For Gay Men Enters Super Bowl Ad Fray

MASHABLE - Jan 29 - ManCrunch, a dating site for gay men, submitted their ad on January 18, and when they checked in again on January 22, they were told that the ad had not yet been approved and that all the spots were sold out. According to Fox News, a CBS representative told Pop Tarts that spots were still open. Officials from the dating site say that they think the process is taking so long because CBS does not want to air the ad, yet the network doesn’t want to reject it outright for fear of backlash from gay and lesbian advocacy groups.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/01/dating-site-for-gay-men-enters-super-bowl-ad-fray-.html

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FriendFinder And Investors Reschedule Their Rendez-Vous

WSJ - Jan 28 - FriendFinder Networks rescheduled its date with IPO investors Wednesday, and realtor chain IFM Investments cut its asking price. FriendFinder was supposed to begin trading under the symbol FFN on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, but is now launching the deal next week.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/01/friendfinder-and-investors-reschedule-their-rendezvous-.html

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Stop fraud before it happens!  Learn how to proactively block out scammers before they attempt to defraud or abuse your good customers. Visit iovation.com or call (503) 224-6010 today.

______________________________________________________________________


eHarmony Settles Lawsuit Over Gay Matchmaking

SF CHRONICLE - Jan 27 - As a result of a 2008 settlement with the state of New Jersey, which sued the company for discrimination, men and women seeking same-sex matches were redirected from eHarmony to an affiliate Web site, Compatiblepartners.net. A separate class-action civil rights lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles in 2007, saying that eHarmony violated California law barring businesses from discriminating based on sexual orientation. The firm would establish a $2M settlement fund, with about $500,000 set aside for gay, lesbian and bisexual Californians who can show they were harmed by eHarmony's policies. The company did not admit wrongdoing.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/01/eharmony-settles-lawsuit-over-gay-matchmaking.html

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BoonEx Partners With Messmo

PRESS RELEASE - Jan 26 - BoonEx, a supplier of downloadable open source software for social networks, dating sites and online communities partners with messmo, a mobile messaging company for dating and personals websites. The messmo Extension is planned to be available for Dolphin 7 in March 2010. Thanks to messmo sites can easily extend the reach of their existing member-to-member communications, such as email or IM, to now reach members when not at their PC by delivering rich messages.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/01/boonex-partners-with-messmo.html

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messmo for Mobile – Extend your member's iDating experience to mobile. Reach your members 24x7 and convert them with messmo's mobile messaging and billing platform.

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SNAP Interactive Reports 79% Increase In Revenue

MARKETWIRE - Jan 26 - SNAP Interactive, a provider of online dating apps for social networks, has experienced an increase in gross receipts since transitioning to a premium subscription model on its 'Are You Interested?' brand in late 2009.
--  $5.6 million + Annual Revenue Run Rate Based on December 2009 Gross Receipts  
--  Annual Run Rate Increases More than 79% over Pre-subscription Revenue Run Rate

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/01/snap-interactive-reports-79-increase-in-revenue-.html

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Avid Life Media Pushes For IPO

THE GLOBE AND MAIL - Jan 25 - Avid Life Media, the parent company of dating sites such as CougarLife.com, EstablishedMen.com and AshleyMadison.com, a site for people seeking extramarital relationships, is raising $60M and is pushing for a listing on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Avid Life posted $30M of sales and $8M of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (or EBITDA) in 2009. Avid Life will use part of the money in a private placement to acquire privately held Moxy Media, an online advertising sales company that runs more than 300 websites.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/01/avid-life-media-pushes-for-ipo.html

______________________________________________________________________

Internet Dating Conference
The business conference for the online dating industry @ InternetDatingConference.com

Industry Message Boards @ mb.InternetDatingConference.com

Conference Organiser
 Marc Lesnick, info@idate2010.com, 212-722-1744

Media Relations
 Press, please contact Mark Brooks
 mark@onlinepersonalswatch.com, 212-444-1636

_________________

Online Personals Watch
www.onlinepersonalswatch.com or opw1.com

Editor: Mark Brooks, mark@onlinepersonalswatch.com, 212-444-1636