I’m back after 4 days unplugged in the Virginia countryside. Good article in E-Commerce Times titled “Signs that online dating growth is slowing down.”
Highlights (or lowlights?)
In September, market leader Match.com, a property of IAC/InterActive (IACI), laid off 30 people and replaced its longtime CEO. Rival True.com cut 90 employees, or 60 percent of its workforce. In August, MatchNet, which owns dating sites JDate.com and AmericanSingles.com, canned its initial public offering. The outfit cited unfavorable market conditions, and its president and CEO has resigned.
Growth rates for the established players are slowing rapidly. The U.S. market will expand a mere 19.4 percent this year, to US$473 million, according to market consultancy Jupiter Research. And growth will rise only 32 percent, to $623 million, over the following five years.
“The big growth in the U.S. is over,” says Nate Elliott, an analyst with Jupiter in New York. “Things are going to get a little bit tougher. Companies are going to have to buckle down.”
There’s a lot of good info about mobile, AOL and Playboy’s plans, so go read it.
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