DATESEEKERS BENIFIT AS ONLINE DATING SITES COMPETE.

Competition for online dating sites heats up this year. New companies breaking in with niche ideas.

Online dating historically was seen as the refuge of the desperate. It also got a bad rap because of its association with seedy chat rooms and predators. But modern online dating is gaining popularity and with 75 million singles in America, the market for romance-related Websites is huge. People are committed to finding someone and willing to pay for it. The days of the completely free dating sites are also gone, and having paid membership has helped in the screening process. And the moneys not bad for the dating services either; according to Match.coms website. (http://www.matchnewscenter.com/uspresskit) They claim more than 653,000 paying subscribers with more than 8 million members having posted their profiles. And online dating had a growth of 37%, to $313 million, in 2002, according to Jupiter Research.

But this past Januarys television commercial by Match.com essentially signaled the online dating taboo had been lifted. The ad was made by Gooby, Silverstein and Partners, and features a comical marriage taking place. By launching their ad in January its clear theyre hoping to cash in on the Valentines Day rush of lonely hearts this month. But if youve been paying attention you may have notices other signals that its OK to date via computer. Last summer Yahoo Personals launched a TV commercial where they featured a blind date couple meeting in a bar with jumbo-sized right hands. And not long ago the Oxygen Network premiered E-Love, where couples who met online finally meet in person.

It IS a tough market to break into," says newcomer to the field, David Rosenthal, who not long ago started http://www.HumorAndLove.net. Says Rosenthal, the only real way to get into the space now is niche marketing-having an angle." And his angle is to have date seekers participate in something called Humor Matching. The idea is to have people include the things that make them laugh as part of their profile and when other seekers search they use those findings to make a connection. Rosenthal believes that people who find the same things funny are probably compatible.    

Most of the big dating sites are a little like buying shoes in a department store; they have a huge selection and you MIGHT find something you like, but you might not. Theyve got these huge databases of people, but there isnt any sort of matching element. So youre sitting there reading all these profiles and its really hit or miss. My site is based on the premise that I know people find a sense of humor vital, so I make it the matching element. Its a little like looking for hip shoes-so you go to a shoe store on Melrose. You already know youre going to find what youre looking for. And at http://www.HumorAndLove.net you already know humor is something the other members value."