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FriendFinder Claims to be Largest
Online Dating Destination
(onlinedatingmagazine.com -
January 20, 2004) FriendFinder, Inc. today announced
it is the most popular
online dating destination for singles based upon a
customized comScore Media Metrix analysis of sites
owned and operated by FriendFinder. The analysis, based
upon September 2003 data from comScore, revealed that
the FriendFinder network of sites drew 11.9 million
unique visitors, far outpacing any other individual
competitor in the marketplace, including such well-known
organizations as Match.com, Yahoo!
Personals and LavaLife.
Here are the unique visitor metrics released
for September 2003's comScore Media Metrix data:
"FriendFinder's
strategy is different from any other online dating
company in that we've created 15 targeted online dating
sites designed to meet the specific interests of singles.
We've observed that singles select their ideal partners
based on key cultural, age, religious and sexual interests," said
Andrew Conru, FriendFinder founder and CEO. "Online
dating isn't about just being hip, slick and cool,
but about making the experience really effective for
our members. We're quite unique in taking this more
focused approach. We've flown underneath the radar
for a while. Now the comScore numbers are revealing
that FriendFinder is indeed a leader in the market."
It's not immediately known if the comScore
metrics also took into account the network of sites
owned by some of the key dating services analyzed.
For example, Match.com also owns and runs Udate.
And American
Singles is part of a network of several
other dating services.
In addition to the 11.9 million visitors
measured by comScore, FriendFinder's internal server
log data indicate that the FriendFinder network of
US and International 15 online dating sites actually
attracts a combined total of more than 20 million visitors
per month. The FriendFinder network spans the widest
possible range of lifestyle choices and special interests
-- from JewishFriendFinder for the Jewish community
and SeniorFriendFinder for adults over the age of 50
to sites oriented to gay and casual dating lifestyles,
such as OutPersonals and Passion.com. Other FriendFinder
websites are tailored to specific ethnic groups and
languages, including AsiaFriendFinder (for the worldwide
Asian community), Amigos (a Latin dating site in English,
Spanish and Portuguese) and Senior FriendFinder for
singles over 50. The comScore statistics do not include
web traffic for FriendFinder's GradFinder, ShareRent,
Dine and FriendPages sites.
Online dating has become the major driver in the online
content business. With its leadership position in the
marketplace established, Friendfinder.com plans to
target new business development opportunities in 2004.
The industry brings in more revenue than any other
category of legitimate paid Web content -- more than
digital music or business and investing advice. Revenues
for online dating are expected to exceed $313 million
for 2003, up from $228 million in 2002, according to
Jupiter Research.
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