Online Personals Insider

Internet Dating Insider # 140, March 29th, 2010

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

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:~ INTERNET DATING CONFERENCE ~:
iDate2010 West is scheduled for June 16-18 at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills.  Be sure to check who we have speaking this time.  More surprises coming...
Early Registration before March 31 saves $500.
http://www.idate2010.com

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:~ CEO INTERVIEWS ~:

MeetMoi - Alexander Harrington
http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/alexander-harrington-president-of-meetmoi.html

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:~ TOP ONLINE PERSONALS WATCH NEWS ITEMS ~:

WEEKLY NEWS VIDEO SUMMARY :
- Mar 29th, 2010 : http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/internet-dating-video-news-summary-34.html

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Match.com Official Android App

ANDROID COMMUNITY - Mar 25 - Match.com has just released an app for Android. Users can find their soul mates right from their Android handset. The app is free to download.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/matchcom-official-android-app.html

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Cineworld Partners With Easydate

MARKETING MAGAZINE - Mar 25 - Cineworld, the cinema chain, is partnering with EasyDate, to form a new online dating service called Back Row Dating. Cineworld currently operates in around 75 locations through the UK, opening its first screen in 1996.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/cineworld-partners-with-easydate-.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 Is #1 Personals Site Of February

EHARMONY BLOG - Mar 25 - eHarmony was the most visited dating site during the busiest month for dating sites. Online Personals sites grew in popularity during the month, experiencing a 5% increase to 24.2M visitors. eHarmony ranked as the #1 Personals site during the month, attracting 5.0M Americans (up 82%), while Match.com ranked second with 3.4M visitors. PlentyOfFish.com attracted 2.8M visitors, followed closely by SinglesNet.com with 2.6M.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/eharmony-is-1-personals-site-of-february.html

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GameCrush Launches Online Dating For Gamers

BIT-TECH - Mar 24 - The service aims to connect paying customers with game-playing ladies and while GameCrush only supports Xbox 360 at the moment, it hopes to expand to Wii, PlayStation 3 and World of Warcraft in the future. There are currently supposed to be ~1,200 PlayDate profiles. Dates cost 400 GameCrush credits - which can only be bought in batches of 500, predictably - and PlayDates keep 60% of the money from each date. 500 credits cost $8.25 USD and GameCrush has figured out the pricing based on what it claims is the equivalent cost of buying a girl a drink.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/gamecrush-launches-online-dating-for-gamers.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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eHarmony Invested In eDarling.de

ONLINE DATING NEWS - Mar 19 - eHarmony acquired 30% of German dating site eDarling.de. eDarling was founded in the summer of 2009. The valuation of the company is estimated at EUR 15-20 Million.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/eharmony-invested-in-edarlingde.html

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Dating Sites Need To Pay Attention To The Surge In Mobile Internet Use

PRWEB - Mar 20 - The Mobile Internet is growing rapidly and will be bigger than desktop Internet use due to social adoption trends, social networking, 3G networks and new mobile device technology. Internet dating sites need to capitalize now. Google's CEO Eric Schmidt in his recent keynote speech at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona said the company had shifted its focus from desktops to mobile. Brendan O'Kane, CEO of messmo, a leading developer of mobile solutions for the Internet dating industry stated: "Extending dating sites to mobile by simple mobile relevant experiences such as messaging, notifications and mobile payments is the key."

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/dating-sites-need-to-pay-attention-to-the-surge-in-mobile-internet-use.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

Internet Dating Insider # 139, March 22nd, 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.  Be sure to check who we have speaking this time.  More surprises coming...
Early Registration before March 31 saves $500.
http://www.idate2010.com

______________________________________________________________________


:~ TOP ONLINE PERSONALS WATCH NEWS ITEMS ~:

WEEKLY NEWS VIDEO SUMMARY :
- Mar 22nd, 2010 : http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/internet-dating-video-news-summary-33.html

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iovation Named Finalist For Technology-Service Company Of The Year

BUSINESS WIRE - Mar 17 - iovation, provider of the device reputation service for preventing online fraud and abuse, has been named a finalist by TechAmerica Oregon for the 2010 Oregon Technology Awards in the category of technology-service company of the year. This year's winners will be announced at the Oregon Technology Awards event on May 6, 2010 at the Portland Art Museum in Portland.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/iovation-named-finalist-for-technologyservice-company-of-the-year.html

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Sex.com Auction Takes A Cold Shower

CNN MONEY - Mar 18 - Buyers lusting after one of the most lucrative domain names in the world, sex.com, will have to wait for their chance to bid on the coveted Internet property. The rights to sex.com were scheduled to be auctioned off Thursday, with bidders required to put up $1M just to get in the door, after the previous owner, Escom, went into foreclosure for unpaid debts. But the auction was postponed after Escom was forced into bankruptcy court late Wednesday by a group of creditors. Matthews said there had been "significant interest" in the domain name, but he declined to say how many bidders were scheduled to take part in the auction.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/sexcom-auction-takes-a-cold-shower.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.

______________________________________________________________________


Match.com Adds Yahoo!7 To List Of Aussie Partners

DIGITAL MEDIA - Mar 16 - Match.com has inked yet another deal with Australian web publishers adding Yahoo!7 to existing partnerships with eBay Australia and NineMSN. Match.com will be the exclusive dating partner of Yahoo!7 in Australia and will team up to launch a new dating service on Yahoo!Xtra in the New Zealand market.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/matchcom-adds-yahoo7-to-list-of-aussie-partners.html

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eHarmony Mobile App Coming Soon

EHARMONY BLOG - Mar 16 - eHarmony has posted a job opening for someone to write the app(s). “As a Mobile Engineer, you will be creating a mobile-consumer application platform from the ground-up for the iPhone and other devices.”

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/eharmony-mobile-app-coming-soon.html

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The Internet Dating Executive Alliance exists to help the idating industry grow and prosper.

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How Plenty Of Fish Tapped Lady Gaga's 'Telephone'

ADAGE - Mar 13 - The most-talked about aspect of Lady Gaga's music video for "Telephone," which premiered Thursday night, was the product placement. At least nine different brands make appearances in the nine-minute music video. Several of the brands were Gaga's ideas and did not pay to be included. A scene in which Gaga curls her hair with Diet Coke cans was an homage to her mother, who used the exact same grooming technique in the '70s. PlentyofFish.com, a dating site, also makes a surprise appearance, the result of ongoing talks with Gaga's marketing team at Universal Music to find the right project. PlentyofFish had seen a 15% increase in search by close of business Friday, but wasn't yet able to quantify an increase in traffic.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/how-plenty-of-fish-tapped-lady-gagas-telephone.html

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Investigation On Behalf Of Shareholders Of Spark Networks

YAHOO FINANCE - Mar 13 - Law Offices of Howard G. Smith is investigating potential claims against the board of directors of Spark Networks, related to a proposal by Great Hill Partners III, to acquire Spark Networks. Under the terms of proposed transaction, Great Hill Partners would acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of the Company not owned by Great Hill Partners, at a cash purchase price of $3.10 per share, an approximate 5% premium over Spark Networks’ closing price on March 2, 2010. Following the close of the transaction, Spark Networks would no longer be a public reporting or trading company. The investigation concerns possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law related to approval of the transaction by the Spark Networks board of directors.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/investigation-on-behalf-of-shareholders-of-spark-networks.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

Internet Dating Insider # 138, March 15th, 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.
Early Registration before March 31 saves $500.
http://www.idate2010.com

______________________________________________________________________


:~ TOP ONLINE PERSONALS WATCH NEWS ITEMS ~:

WEEKLY NEWS VIDEO SUMMARY :
- Mar 15th, 2010 : http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/internet-dating-video-news-summary-32.html

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eHarmony Shuts Down eHarmony Marriage

EHARMONY BLOG - Mar 14 - eHarmony Marriage now redirects to eHarmony Advice. Offering an online alternative to marriage counseling was an innovative idea, but it never flew or impressed the company’s then-new VC shareholders. It was launched on February 6, 2006. In late November 2009, the site quietly removed the link to it from its pages. Starting yesterday, the subdomain for it is gone.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/eharmony-shuts-down-eharmony-marriage.html

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Meetic/Match Joint-Venture In Latin America Completed

PRESS RELEASE - Mar 10 - As announced on 4th February 2010, Meetic and Match.com, a subsidiary of IAC, signed a strategic agreement to create a joint venture in Latin America. As foreseen by this agreement, Meetic and Match.com have thus contributed their respective activities on the South American continent to the new entity: Meetic’s ParPerfeito site and Match.com’s activities in other Latin American countries. Following the deal, Match.com and Meetic each own 50% of the new joint venture’s equity, whilst Match.com will control the entity’s operations.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/meeticmatch-jointventure-in-latin-america-completed-.html

______________________________________________________________________


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.

______________________________________________________________________


Black Americans One Of The Fastest-Growing Segments In Online Dating

MARKETWATCH - Mar 10 - According to research from Packaged Facts, more than six out of ten Black Americans are unmarried, thereby making that group the most unattached in America. The solution may lie in online dating, where African-Americans now constitute one of the fastest-growing segments of that market. BlackPeopleMeet.com is operated by People Media. Launched in 2002, BlackPeopleMeet has helped introduce tens of thousands of couples, with a majority of members ages 35-45. Every month, the site reaches 4% of the total Black population in the US.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/black-americans-one-of-the-fastestgrowing-segments-in-online-dating.html

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Online Video-dating Cuts Guesswork

NEWS.COM.AU - Mar 10 - New internet services are killing the blind date and banishing the uncertainty that comes with meeting a mate online. An Australian service called Skyecandy leading the charge. Skyecandy users can sign up for up to 10 five-minute online speed dates in a row, with partners chosen on their age, basic details and location. Skyecandy works with Skype. The service had attracted ~18,000 users so far, with online daters in Australia and the US the fastest adopters.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/online-videodating-cuts-guesswork.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.

______________________________________________________________________


The Cold Hard Facts About Internet Dating

CHINA DAILY - Mar 10 - Dr Li Song is the CEO and co-founder of the world's largest matchmaking website for Chinese speakers, www.zhenai.com. It boasts 23M registered users - and new ones are signing up at a rate of 30,000 a day. The size of Dr Li's database enables his team of 400 call-center matchmakers to input the data for each new seeker of love, and out pops the most likely suitor for his or her profile. "There are two approaches to matchmaking," says Dr Li. "One is that you come up with a psychological theory and predict the results based on your theory, but because my background is more mathematically inclined, what I do is based on statistical results. "We operate on two matrices: how many of our callers get at least one date (we aim at 93%) and the time it takes between establishing contact and the actual date. This should be within two and a half weeks."

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/the-cold-hard-facts-about-internet-dating.html

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Zoosk Makes Top 50 VC Backed Companies List

WSJ - Zoosk made Wall Street Journals list of top VC backed companies, coming in at #42 out of 50. They were the only internet dating company on the list. Social networking oriented companies included Slide, Zynga and Rock You. The rankings were calculated based on the track record of success for the VC investors who sit on the company's board, the amount of capital raised the founding executives track record of success and the recent growth in the value of the company.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/zoosk-makes-top-50-vc-backed-companies-list.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 # 137, March 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.
Early Registration before March 31 saves $500.
http://www.idate2010.com

______________________________________________________________________


:~ MESSAGE BOARDS ~:
The State of Maryland is currently considering regulating the online dating industry.  Read the full text of bills HB 65 & SB 129 here and see what others in the industry have to say:

http://mb.internetdatingconference.com/maryland-is-trying-to-regulate-the-online-dating-industry-t3353.html

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:~ CEO INTERVIEWS ~:

SetForMarriage - Brad Boyd
http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/bradley-boyd-ceo-of-setformarriage.html


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:~ TOP ONLINE PERSONALS WATCH NEWS ITEMS ~:

WEEKLY NEWS VIDEO SUMMARY :
- Mar 8th, 2010 : http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/opw_weekly_news_march8th2010.html

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Spark Networks Full Year 2009 Financial Results

MARKET WIRE - Mar 4 - Revenue for the Q4 of 2009 was $11.1M, a decrease of 16% compared to $13.2M for the Q4 2008, and flat with the prior quarter. Revenue for the full year was $45.4M, a decrease of 21% compared to $57.3M for the 12 months ended December 31, 2008. Average paying subscribers for the Company, as a whole, in the Q4 of 2009 were 168,646, a decrease of 5% compared to 177,011 for the Q4 of 2008. Average paying subscribers for the full year were 166,267, a decrease of 11% compared to 186,957 for last year. Q4 2009 revenue for Jewish Networks was $7.1M, a decrease of 11%. Q4 2009 revenue for General Market Networks was $477,000, a decrease of 63%. Q4 2009 revenue for Other Affinity Networks was $3.0M, a decrease of 15%.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/spark-networks-full-year-2009-financial-results.html

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EasyDate Expects L20 Million Revenue This Year

REAL BUSINESS - Mar 3 - EasyDate, Max Polyakov’s business, boasts over 7M members across a range of websites, and it’s growing fast – 1.5M new members signed up in the second half of 2009 alone. According to Bill Dobbie, the company’s chairman, the company recorded L2.8M in profit on a L12M turnover in its last accounts, and expects turnover to ~ L20M this year. EasyDate – under its various brand names of DateTheUK.com, BeNaughty.com, Cupid.com, Canoodle.com and SpeedDater events – is now present and growing in Australia, India, Ireland, South America, and the US. “We’re also looking to move into France, Germany and Spain, and to really grow our American business significantly,” adds Polyakov. The next step is for the company to raise more capital, which will help them expand their operations.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/easydate-expects-20-million-revenue-this-year.html

______________________________________________________________________


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.

______________________________________________________________________


PE Firm Offers To Take Spark Networks Private

PAID CONTENT - Mar 3 - PE firm Grant Great Hill Partners, which might be best known for buying (and then selling) IGN, wants to take online dating company Spark Networks private. Great Hill, which bought a minority stake in Spark Networks in late 2005 and now owns about a quarter of the company’s stock, is offering to buy the shares it does not own in a deal that would value the company at ~$64M. Spark Networks says it has formed a special committee of its independent directors to review the proposal and “any other potential business combination.”

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/pe-firm-offers-to-take-spark-networks-private-.html

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Smartdate Secures €2M

TECH CRUNCH - Mar 3 - Paris based dating service Smartdate has raised €1.7M with European VC 360 Capital Partners. Smartdate, which previously secured Angel investment from four international Business Angels for a total of €300,000, was founded by Fabrice Le Parc, who also launched be2.com in France and Benelux in 2006-07. This €2 million total amount of seed funding will be mainly used to market the service as they have an objective of one million users before the end of the year. Smartdate wants to use Facebook Friends as a criteria for your dating search. Using Facebook Connect to log in to Smartdate, you search for single people among friends of your friends.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/smartdate-secures-2m-.html

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iTelebill is 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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SeniorPeopleMeet.com Introduces Online Magazine

BUSINESS WIRE - Mar 3 - With ~85M baby boomers in North America and ~30 % of them single, there's a lot of prime-age dating going on. SeniorPeopleMeet.com, the online dating site devoted to senior singles, has launched SeniorPeopleMeet.com Magazine, a free online magazine designed to serve the particular needs of singles within that community -- enabling all senior singles to benefit from the latest dating tips, trends and topics that are unique to them.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/seniorpeoplemeetcom-introduces-online-magazine-.html

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Dating Site Scams Rise In Australia

ABC - Mar 1 - Australians reported losses of ~$70M to fraud and swindling to the consumer watchdog last year, but real losses could be much higher. Scams linked to dating sites were up by 30%. More than 12,000 people lost between $1 and $10,000. Two Australians lost more than $10M.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/dating-site-scams-rise-in-australia.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

Internet Dating Insider # 136, March 1st, 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.
Early Registration is extended to March 5 and (save $700).
http://www.idate2010.com

VIDEO from Miami 2010: http://www.idate2010.com/eventvideo-miami-2010.php

______________________________________________________________________


:~ CEO INTERVIEWS ~:

Zoosk - Alex Mehr
http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/alex-mehr-ceo-of-zoosk.html


Weopia - Dave Wilkie
http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/dave-wilkie-ceo-of-weopia.html


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:~ TOP ONLINE PERSONALS WATCH NEWS ITEMS ~:

WEEKLY NEWS VIDEO SUMMARY :
- Mar 2nd, 2010 : http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/03/internet-dating-video-news-summary-30.html

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IAC’s Match.com To Acquire Singlesnet

PR NEWSWIRE – Feb 25 – Match.com has signed an agreement to acquire Singlesnet. Terms of the deal are not being disclosed. Greg Blatt, CEO of Match.com said, “While Singlesnet’s traffic is currently in decline, we believe we can reverse that trend, increase the site’s profitability and improve the overall user experience. This is more of a value acquisition than a strategic one, and Singlesnet will predominantly be run as a standalone business. Nonetheless, the addition of the site’s considerable traffic to our existing aggregation of traffic in this single category should open new monetization opportunities for Match.com’s collective portfolio of domestic online dating brands.”

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/iacs-matchcom-to-acquire-singlesnet-.html

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HerWay.com Partners With Honesty Online

PR WEB - Feb 24 - HerWay.com, a dating site that enables women to lead the matchmaking process, partners with Honesty Online. Honesty Online allows members of HerWay to  share authenticated identity information with other members, making it safer to meet each other in person. HerWay’s innovative approach to dating, ensures women control the action by restricting men from searching, while allowing women to browse for men anonymously. When she's ready to connect, her profile is revealed only to the man of her choosing by initiating contact with him. This new concept provides women unprecedented privacy, discretion, and safety as they search for Mr. Right.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/herwaycom-partners-with-honesty-online-.html

______________________________________________________________________


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.

______________________________________________________________________


Online Dating In Germany Is Booming

HORIZONT.NET - Feb 24 - According to Nielsen 7,5 Million German Internet users visited at least one dating site in January 2010. Parship, Elitepartner, Friendscout24 overall counted for 16,4% of active Internet users in Germany. In the last year, dating sites spent 107M Eur for advertising. FriendScount24 which spent 39.8M Eur had 1.1M unique visitors in January 2010 followed by ElitePartner with 893 unique visitors and FlirtCafe with 809 unique visitors.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/online-dating-in-germany-is-booming.html

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Lavalife Is Being Shopped

THEDEAL.COM - - Feb 12 - Lavalife is being shopped by its owner, online marketer Vertrue. Vertrue paid C$152.5M ($113.9M) to acquire Lavalife in 2004. Vertrue was itself bought out by management, private equity firms One Equity Partners and Brencourt Investors and venture capital firm Rho Ventures for $855M in 2007. Lavalife's Web properties have been on the block for about four months. Lavalife Voice, a phone-based dating service, is not being shopped. Some say the auction has been going on for longer than that.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/lavalife-is-being-shopped.html

______________________________________________________________________


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.

______________________________________________________________________


The Art Of Flirting, In 140 Characters Or Less

CTV.CA - Feb 13 - Typing or texting to Twitter is becoming a go-to way to flirt and find love as people become more comfortable in the Web 2.0 world. "Flitter," a flirting game that was hosted by speed dating company FastLife, gave singles the chance to tweet flirty messages to others at the event. FastLife founders Justin and Annabelle Parfitt said flirting through Twitter allows people to come out of their shells and begin to interact.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/the-art-of-flirting-in-140-characters-or-less.html

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Match, eHarmony And PlentyofFish Target UK Dating Market

TIMES ONLINE UK - Feb 14 – Facing a stagnant US online dating market, the top US dating sites are focusing more efforts in the UK. Comscore has reported a 1% drop in the global dating market, but the UK is showing a strong 16% growth. Match.com and eHarmony.com, each with a reported 20 million members, dominate the estimated L1 billion a year matchmaking business in the paid site space. PlentyofFish.com holds the crown for the free dating space, attracting 933,000 visitors in Britain last month alone. Kate Bilenki at Plentyoffish said the site appeared to be picking up business that would otherwise have gone to the paid sites. “If you are on Match then you may find that the same people are also on eHarmony. So a lot of people are signing up with us as well because we are free,” she said. eHarmony added 130,000 new UK members in January, bringing their subscriber base to 800,000. Match.com has long been established in the UK and boasts roughly 6.5 million members.

http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2010/02/match-eharmony-and-plentyoffish-target-uk-dating-market.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, 212-444-1636I