I just got back from iDate Miami and want to share a few thoughts with you:

There are some very interesting changes occurring in the Dating industry right now. It’s almost like the ground is shifting, with many people able to sense the shift, but few understanding where it is going or how to handle it. Look for yourself:

- Paid websites open Free portals;
- Free websites add Paid services;
- Payment gateway companies, which avoided working with dating sites before - now actively look for them;
- Established dating companies are more open to new marketing opportunities, JVs and partnerships which they didn’t consider before;
- Great potential and opportunities are opening for new dating projects.

In another words: while some established sites may see challenges, new sites see opportunities.

In fact, many new dating projects already successfully use the situation in their favor:
- There is a new site which recognizes psychological differences between men’ and women’s approach to dating, - and presents them with different interfaces;
- A dating site which leverages existing profiles from social sites - instead of asking you to create new profiles from scratch;
- A project which matches people by DNA samples;
- Niche projects: sites for pet lovers, for people who love tattoos, etc.

So, what allows these new projects to grow right next to the old and established sites? What keeps the bigger sites from holding the ground better?

Several reasons:

- smaller sites usually can move faster due to their light infrastructure. So, when a market situation changes they can act faster. Larger corporate projects need to go through their routines and boardroom meetings, etc. Their larger size and complex internal connections can significantly slow down the response time;

- For established projects it is harder to tweak their old business models because it means a greater risk. It takes guts to change something what worked well for you for years. The result might not be as expected. Start-ups are free from this predicament because they don’t have any old business models to cling to;

- small start-up projects are often run by enthusiasts, people who really love and believe in what they do, to the point where they are literally ready to get to work without anyone guaranteeing their pay… This alone amounts to something. Such level of dedication is not always found in larger projects.

It is exciting to see new projects emerging, and I believe we’ll see more new sites in the near future.

Andrey Malygin - Founder, DatingAdNetwork

P.S. Stay tuned for more interviews with leading Dating companies!

Boonex, developer of dating and social networking software solutions, has recently released a new Public Preview version of Dolphin 7.

This Public Preview is actually based on Dolphin 6.1 (codename Spunky), but Boonex has done some considerable re-working to make it completelly stand out from 6.1. The version includes many new impressive features, such as integration with Google Maps, addition of desktop app based on Adobe Air and many many other updated and new components of the system. Check out this post at Boonex Blog for the detailed list.

Upcoming Dolphin 7 is 100% open-source and is claimed to be the last major update based on the current engine. Dolphin 8 (codename Poseidon) is to replace Dolphin 7 once it grows to its full glory. We’ll keep you updated on the development of both projects.

This March sees the launch of the Battle of the Builds - a competition in which all Dating Ad Network members are invited to participate in the Bone Fish program. The competitors will fight against each other to expand their dating affiliate portfolios thus earning themselves the biggest commissions and biggest bonuses of the entire affiliate base along with some nice bonuses from Bone Fish.

Each Dating Ad Network member is welcomed to sign up here . Following the sign and set up processes, members proceed to set up a networking site of his/her choice. Members may choose either the Black, Lesbian or Gay network, or a themed romance network such as Disabled Dating or 20 Something’s Dating (network combinations can be viewed in the Bone Fish Admin Centre), and will then proceed to brand the site with a logo, corporate header and footer. The member can also completely redesign the site, and make any other modifications to it, provided by the tools of BoneFish white label dating engine.

Following this, all participants are given the opportunity to generate as many sales as they can – through their own marketing means - and the first three members to reach 100 activated members will be awarded with bonuses in their affiliate admin accounts PLUS a higher commission fee on any active member that converts to a paying member.

Prizes and commissions are as follows:

• 1st Prize: 70% commission and $100
• 2nd Prize: 65% commission and $75
• 3rd Prize: 60% commission and $50

To be eligible for the above prizes and commissions, participants should:

• Sign up for the competition at: http://www.bone-fish.com/promo/?p=DAN-competition
• Buy or use a related domain name
• Choose a niche (Black, Lesbian, Gay, or a themed romance niche) and price range for the site
• Use the Bone Fish layout template and other tools provided to create a comprehensive adult site
• Create a front page with a corporate logo
• Submit the above fully-branded site to the search engines
• Market the site as they see fit
• Reach 100 active (FREE REGISTRANT) members before the rest of the competitors

The start date for the competition is March 1st, and will continue until 3 Dating Ad Network members reach the 100-member target. The first three to make it to 100 active members will be the winners, and will be rewarded with the relevant sum (as above) plus 60, 65 or 75% commission on any and all sales that are made throughout the competition.

Sign-up for the competition right now and get ready before the rest of the crowd!

For the last several months we’ve been working hard to bring good news to existing and new Dating Ad Network members… And today is the day!

New-generation, completely redesigned Dating Ad Network engine gives you considerably more control and flexibility over their accounts!

Here is the list of most important changes:

• Have UNLIMITED number of banners per account;
• Have unlimited number of sites per account;
• 20 categories – for precise targeting of your ads and traffic;
• Block unwanted ads, sites and even whole categories;
• Control where your sites are advertised;
• More banner sizes supported: Leaderboard (728×90) Skyscraper (160×600) and Banner (468×60);
• More ad spots per page now supported;
• Share credits between your sites: earn credits on one site for promoting your other site(s);
• Cross-promote your sites between each other – if you wish;
• Advanced features: JS codes, alternative ad tags, and others; too many to list here – you have to see it to believe!

Existing members DO NOT HAVE TO CHANGE ANYTHING. Of course the new system will keep working fine with the older banner codes. Neither does it require any extra tweaking.

However, it gives so much more power that it is highly recommended for you to log in and explore when you have a minute. Update your codes, grab additional banner sizes for your pages, maybe exclude those unwanted ads, etc.

Btw, notice the Enhanced Restrict Websites feature: you can restrict ANY banner, ANY website or ANY category of sites from displaying on your pages. You can also restrict where you do not want your own site to be advertised and also block sites by entire categories.

And that’s not all: you can now use up to 3 banners of the same size on every page, and up to 5 total DatingAdNetwork codes per page.

If you have any questions - please use the Support form on the site. We have added additional customer support staff to answer your questions faster.

Login to your account at http://www.datingadnetwork.com/member/ … or sign up now!

Dating Ad Network together with Date.com and Omnidate.com has hosted the first Toronto Internet Dating Industry Party for the owners and executives of the Internet Personals and Social Networking companies.

The event was held last Tuesday on November 25, 2008.

The party was a huge success and was attended by 27 representatives of 15 dating technology companies, including:

• Date.com
• OmniDate Inc.
• Dating Ad Network
• Lavalife Corp.
• Epic Advertising
• Canoe / Reseau Contact
• ChristianCafe.com
• Cupid.com
• Talkster
• Impact Mobile
• Randodate.com
• WorldFriends Networks
• Personality Pro
• Dating Essentials

You can see some photos from the event and sign up for notification about the next Toronto Internet Dating Industry Party here:
http://www.torontodatingsocial.com