Online Dating in the EU, Recession-Proof

ONLINE DATING IN THE EU, RECESSION-PROOF

The global recession has not made one dent in the EU’s passion for online dating services. On the contrary, EU dating services have recently seen major increases in subscriptions.

Match.com International UK had a before taxes profit of £3.65 million this past year, with the year before showing a loss of £2.2 million. In the first quarter this year, Match International reported a 12 percent increase in paying members.

While the number in the US is expected to drop, for some unknown reason Europeans are more on the make.

WhiteLabelDating.com, a UK based online dating service saw its membership grow over the last year by 250 percent to over 1 million members. Nielsen Online also reported a 15% increase in unique visitors this year over last, so there is no slowing down for Parisians or hot-blooded Spaniards in their love of online dating.

Online Senior Dating Comes of Age

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Online dating is coming of age, and is no longer merely for teen singles or college kids looking for love in all the right places. More and more senior citizens are using online services for finding love later in life, and it’s expected that 30 percent of men and 60 percent of women over the age of 65 will find dates online this year.

There are many senior-dating sites these days (classified as over 50 dating), with all the popular categories found on the younger versions: religious dating, ethnic dating, and lesser categories for same sex seniors and just sex seniors. The most popular online senior dating services are Lavalife Prime, PerfectMatch.com, Prime Singles, Senior FriendFinder, and Senior Matchmaker.

In addition, the other major services are also doing a brisk love business. eHarmony, Match.com, and Yahoo! Personals all are increasing their number of subscribers.

Online Dating Services Now a Billion Dollar Industry

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Online Dating Services Now a Billion Dollar Industry

 

Online dating services now have a subscriber population estimated to be over 1 billion. That’s an industry of over $1 billion USD per year with growth rates steady at 10% per year. North America alone has over 1,400 online dating sites, where they are the third largest industry.

 

PACCAR Financial - Online Services
PACCAR Financial – Online Services (Photo credit: TruckPR)

 

Yet the online dating phenomenon is not restricted to the Americas or Europe, as Asians have embraced this love technology wholeheartedly. Japan has 1,600 online dating sites, even more than the US. India has 15 million subscribers, and that figure is expected to grow despite the economic crisis.

 

Perhaps the most significant growth factor has to do with the fact that more and more elderly people are dating online. 60 percent of women over the age of 65 and 30 percent of men of the same age group are expected to find dates on the web this year.

 

 

Top Online Dating Service Websites

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Top Online Dating Service Websites

The top three online dating services of the year are most likely to be same top 3 as last year, as new polls are showing. Match.com, Yahoo! Personals and eHarmony are in the lead again for top honors as well as top revenue generation.

Here's another potential eHarmony date. Why do...
Here’s another potential eHarmony date. Why do you suppose he’s smiling? (Photo credit: David Reber’s Hammer Photography)

However, these top sites are now facing stiff competition from niche sites like JDate for Jewish singles, Christian Club for Christian singles, and Shaadi for Indian singles. Targeted sites like those are ever popular, and one can find a site that matches any discriminating love interest.

Even popular social networking sites like FaceBook and MySpace have organized themselves to cater to love seekers using single sub groups. But the biggest growth in the industry is coming from the most surprising spot in the world: India. India has two of the top 10 sites worldwide with Shaadi and Love From India garnering more then 15 million seekers per year.

 

 

Online Dating Growing Through the Ages

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Online Dating Growing Through the Ages

 

In the world of love, online dating services have become the apple in the Garden of Eden. Everyone is having a bite. Even those that thought just a few years back that they would never partake, now do. Only those that sell porn rival online dating sites.

 

Online Dating Workshop
Online Dating Workshop (Photo credit: jay mann)

 

Online dating services are usually defined as any online service that offers unmoderated matchmaking, although that definition is always changing. Take for example the relatively new offshoot of social networking for singles, with subgroups within Facebook and Second Life becoming de facto dating services.

 

But traditionally, sites like Match.com, Yahoo! Personals and eHarmony have led the charge, and continue to grow day by day. However, niche personal sites like JDate (for Jewish singles), Christian Mingle (for Christian singles) and Manhunt (for gay men) have become just as popular and offer a more select line of love interests for the discriminating and yearning heart.

 

 

Single Online Dating Free Trials

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Online Dating, Personals and Singles at Matchmaker.com
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Matchmaker.com is the longest running online dating site on the web, launching in 1996. An online personals website for a more mature audience, Matchmaker.com is an online dating community consisting of 35+ serious singles focused on finding long-term serious relationships and those who are marriage minded. Site features include online personals, a suite of communication tools, dating advice, success stories and much more. Have your customers join the most successful dating site around!

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Date.com

Date.com has been introducing thousands of singles since 1997. An easily recognizable brand, Date.com is an online personals website for singles interested in casual dating. Site features include online personals, a suite of communication tools, dating advice, success stories and much more.

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Date a Millionaire

Date A Millionaire.com is for men and women looking to date singles millionaires. This site features only real single men and women who are interested in dating, meeting as friends or being a sugar daddy or sugar baby. No fake profiles, no spam, just real life people looking for dates.

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