I missed the investor call this morning but judging from the press release, the numbers clearly show that JDate and American Singles remain the primary properties in the Spark portfolio.
Jdate revenue up 9% while it’s Customer Acquisition Cost is up 90% and subsscriptions down 3%.
Overall, Customer Acquisition Costs were down.
American singles subscriptions down 18%.
“Other Businesses” subs up 106% and revenue up 54%.
Amazing to see that AmericanSingle acquisition costs were almost $54.
More to come on this as I have some time to digest the data.
SPARK NETWORKS REPORTS SECOND QUARTER 2005 FINANCIAL RESULTS
– JDate Revenue Grows 9% to $6.2 Million with 89% Contribution Margin in Q2 ’05
– Completes Acquisition of MingleMatchâ„¢, Inc.
– EBITDA1 Profit for Third Consecutive Quarter
Â- Launches Websites on New Technology Platform
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., August 30, 2005 – Spark Networks plc, a leading provider of online personals services, today reported second quarter 2005 financial results.
Second Quarter Highlights
“We are pleased to report that JDate continued its strong performance, with revenue increasing 9% and continuing to deliver exceptional contribution margins. This helped to generate our third consecutive quarter of EBITDA profit,� stated David Siminoff, Spark Networks President and CEO. “One of our primary goals for the past year has been to better manage our business so that we could quickly respond to changes, and our EBITDA performance over the past three quarters is evidence of that.�
Also among the highlights of the company’s quarter was the acquisition of MingleMatch, Inc. The MingleMatch portfolio of websites reflects a cross-section of religious, ethnic, special interest and geographically targeted communities. “A key component of our corporate strategy has been to complement JDate by launching businesses in other vertical affinity markets,� stated Mr. Siminoff. “The MingleMatch acquisition, which added ChristianMingle®, BlackSingles Connection™ and LDS Mingle™, among others, to our existing portfolio of websites, helped us to significantly accelerate that expansion.�
In addition, the company continued the development of its previously-announced new technology platform. The company expects the three-tier architecture, based upon distributed Service Oriented Architecture principles, to enable it to more rapidly develop new capabilities and enhance its ability to efficiently scale its websites. During the second quarter, three of the company’s websites, CollegeLuv™, Cupid® and Glimpse® launched on the new platform. The company expects to transition JDate and AmericanSingles® to the platform later this year, which will allow for the addition of new features and functionalities to those services as well.
Financial Results
The results for the second quarter reflect the company’s acquisition of MingleMatch, Inc., effective May 19, 2005.
EBITDA for the second quarter of 2005 was $368,000, compared to an EBITDA loss of $3.1 million in the same period last year. EBITDA for the six months ended June 30, 2005 was $3.4 million, compared to an EBITDA loss of $5.2 million, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Revenue for the second quarter of 2005 was $15.5 million, a decrease of 2%, compared to $15.8 million, from the same period last year. Revenue for the six months ended June 30, 2005 was $32.0 million, an increase of 4%, compared to $30.9 million, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
The company reported a net loss of $859,000, or $(0.03) per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2005, compared to a net loss of $4.1 million, or $(0.18) per share, in the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2005, the company reported net income of $1.1 million, or $0.04 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $7.1 million, or $(0.33) per share, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Segment Reporting2
The company reported second quarter 2005 revenue for its JDate segment of $6.2 million, an increase of 9%, compared to $5.7 million, from the same period last year. JDate revenue for the six months ended June 30, 2005 was $12.7 million, an increase of 10%, compared to $11.6 million, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Second quarter 2005 revenue for the company’s AmericanSingles® segment was $7.3 million, a decrease of 16%, compared to $8.7 million, from the same period last year. AmericanSingles revenue for the six months ended June 30, 2005 was $15.4 million, a decrease of 11%, compared to $17.3 million, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Second quarter 2005 revenue for the company’s Other Businesses segment was $2.0 million, an increase of 54%, compared to $1.3 million, from the same period last year. Other Businesses revenue for the six months ended June 30, 2005 was $3.9 million, an increase of 95%, compared to $2.0 million, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
“In the second quarter, we began to selectively increase marketing spending on AmericanSingles to capitalize on efficient marketing opportunities as they presented themselves,� stated Mr. Siminoff. “In the first quarter, we had re-oriented management of our marketing program and significantly cut spending, which impacted second quarter revenue results for AmericanSingles. We expect to continue to capitalize on efficient marketing opportunities as they arise.�
Business Metrics
Average paying subscribers for the company in the second quarter of 2005 totaled approximately 215,600, a decrease of 6%, compared to 228,400, from the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2005, average paying subscribers totaled 219,200, an increase of 1%, compared to 217,900, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Average paying subscribers for the company’s JDate segment were 68,100, a decrease of 3%, compared to 70,100, from the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2005, average paying subscribers for the company’s JDate segment totaled 69,300, a decrease of 3%, compared to 71,200, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Average paying subscribers for the company’s AmericanSingles segment were 109,000, a decrease of 18%, compared to 132,800, from the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2005, average paying subscribers for the company’s AmericanSingles segment totaled 115,300, a decrease of 11%, compared to 129,900, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Average paying subscribers for the company’s Other Businesses segment were 38,500, an increase of 51%, compared to 25,500, from the same period last year.
For the six months ended June 30, 2005, average paying subscribers for the company’s Other Businesses segment totaled 34,600, an increase of 106%, compared to 16,800, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Direct subscriber acquisition cost3 (SAC) for the company in the second quarter of 2005 was $31.11, a decrease of 23%, compared to $40.53, from the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2005, SAC totaled $27.35, a decrease of 20%, compared to $34.13, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
SAC for the company’s JDate segment was $13.82, an increase of 90%, compared to $7.26, from the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2005, SAC for the company’s JDate segment totaled $11.30, an increase of 76%, compared to $6.43, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
SAC for the company’s AmericanSingles segment was $41.30, a decrease of 23%, compared to $53.51, from the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2005, SAC for the company’s AmericanSingles segment totaled $32.68, a decrease of 26%, compared to $44.40, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
SAC for the company’s Other Businesses segment was $26.58, a decrease of 17%, compared to $32.08, from the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2005, SAC for the company’s Other Businesses segment totaled $34.64, an increase of 8%, compared to $32.10, for the six months ended June 30, 2004.
Investor conference call:
The company will discuss its financial results during a live teleconference today at 9:30 a.m. Pacific time (US & Canada) and 6:30 p.m. Frankfurt time.
Call Title: Spark Networks plc 2nd Quarter 2005 Results
Toll-Free (United States): +1-800-370-0898
International: +1-973-409-9260
About Spark Networks plc:
Spark Networks plc’s Global Depositary Shares trade on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE) under the symbol “MHJG�. The Spark Networks portfolio of consumer websites includes, among others, JDate.com (www.jdate.com), AmericanSingles.com, BBWPersonalsPlus™.com, BlackSinglesConnection.com, ChristianMingle.com, CollegeLuv.com, Cupid.co.il, Date.ca®, Glimpse.com, JDate.co.il, and LDSMingle.com. The company was formed in England in 1998.
For More Information:
Investors: Mark Thompson
+ 1-323-836-3000
mthompson@spark.net
Media: Greg Liberman
+ 1-323-836-3000
gliberman@spark.net
1 EBITDA is defined as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
2 In accordance with Financial Accounting Standard No. 131, the company’s financial reporting includes detailed data on three separate operating segments. The JDate segment consists of the company’s JDate.com website and its co-branded websites. The AmericanSingles segment consists of the company’s AmericanSingles.com website and its co-branded websites. The Other Businesses segment consists of all of the company’s other websites and businesses and gives effect to the MingleMatch acquisition on May 19, 2005.
3 Direct subscriber acquisition cost is defined as total direct marketing costs divided by the number of new paying subscribers during the period. This represents the average cost of acquiring a new paying subscriber during the period.
[tags: finance, spark networks]
