Hello, and welcome to Online Personal Watch’s Weekly News Roundup. I’m Mark Brooks, and here are the latest headlines from around the industry.
This edition of the weekly news roundup is kindly sponsored by iovation.
Blackbox Republic is officially open for business with the launch of a private network for people of all orientations and lifestyles. The website aims to blend the best features of social networking with the personal perks of online dating. In the words of CEO, Sam Lawrence, “if Facebook and Match.com had a love child it would be Blackbox Republic”. (Blackbox Republix is a new Courtland Brooks client, I should note)
Just in case you missed the announcement before, Zoosk has raised a whopping $30 million in series D funding. The round was led by new investor Bessemer Venture Partners with the cooperation of existing partners Canaan and ATA ventures. If you think 30 million is a great number, then 40 million is even better. That is the total number of singles who are currently using the Zoosk application.
Russian dating website Mamba is also peeking 8 digits with just over 11 million members. They’re also seeing over 100,000 concurrent users now. Now for Hookups and Breakups! CommunityMatrimony.com recently “tied the Knot” with Twitter. Members of Community Matrimony now have the bonus feature of adding their Twitter updates to their Matrimony profile!
The adultery site, AshleyMadison.com, is attempting to secure a promotional contract with Tiger Woods. Ashley Madison offered Tiger Woods $5 million to promote for AshelyMadison. Wood’s marriage troubles, of course, were recently made public knowledge. CEO,Noel Biderman said he has preserved more marriages than he has destroyed.
Meanwhile, online dating website IllicitEncounters.com has reported a huge increase in the number of financial workers signing up to have an affair. Out of the 380,000 members across Britain, 20,000 work in financial services.
Match.com is gung-ho about mobile dating and is at it again with the release of a new mobile app for Sprint Network’s Palm Pixi phone. Users will be able to view singles in their area, edit their profile, and connect with other singles while away from their computers.
Finally, iDate awards voting is now open to the public alongside industry professionals! As a reminder you have until January 7th to get your voting in for the 1st ever Internet Dating Industry Awards. Let your voice be heard. Submit your picks for the best dating site, best matchmaker, best dating software provider, most innovative company and more. Awards will be handed out in a special ceremony on Jan. 28 during the 7th Annual Internet Dating Conference in Miami.
This edition of Online Personal Watch’s Weekly News Roundup has been sponsored by iovation. iovation, helping companies expose cybercriminals and fight fraud with device reputation.
That’s all for this week’s news roundup. Tune in again next week as we bring you the latest and greatest from the world of online dating. No ads, no fluff, just raw news and CEO interviews. I’m Mark Brooks. Thank you.
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