22 Sep 2010 07:00
| Date: | 22 September 2010 |
| On behalf of: | Easydate plc ('Easydate', 'the Group' or 'the Company') |
| Embargoed until: | 0700hrs |
Easydate plc
Acquisition of Cupid.com for USD 6.6 million (£4.4 million)
Easydate plc (AIM: EZD), the internet-based dating operator, is pleased to announce its first significant acquisition post-listing, with the purchase of Cupid.com Inc. from OnTargetJobs Inc. ("OnTargetJobs").
Easydate is paying a total purchase price of USD6.6Million (£4.4million) in cash for Cupid.com Inc which owns the Cupid.com website and a number of other associated domains.
Previously Easydate has operated Cupid.com outside the USA and Canada under a licence from OnTargetJobs. The revenues and profits from this operation have been growing significantly and the Company was keen to secure full ownership of the domain both to protect its existing revenue stream and also allow Easydate to own and grow Cupid.com revenues in the USA and Canada.
Cupid.com Inc generated revenue of £1.3m and EBITDA of £0.5m in the year ended 31 December 2009. It is expected that the Cupid.com business will be break-even between now and 31 December 2010 as Easydate starts to increase online marketing spend.
Cupid.com has been focused towards generating subscribers and revenue through partnership deals with a number of radio stations throughout North America. This acquisition will allow Easydate to re-energise the Cupid.com service within North America, and when combined with the on line marketing programmes of our other American sites, will greatly enhance growth in both the US and internationally.
Commenting on the acquisition, Bill Dobbie, Chief Executive of Easydate, said:
"This acquisition and our results today show that we are executing our plans to grow both organically and acquisitively. Bringing Cupid.com's domains into our portfolio will enable us to gain an improved foothold in the North American market.
Following our successful license of the Cupid.com brand outside North America, today's acquisition allows us to secure and grow Cupid.com globally"
For further information please contact:
| Easydate plc | Tel: +44 (0)131 220 1313 |
| Bill Dobbie, CEO |
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| Cenkos Securities plc | Tel: +44 (0)131 220 6939 |
| Ken Fleming |
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| Beth McKiernan |
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| Redleaf Communications | Tel: +44 (0)207 566 6700 |
| Paul Dulieu / Henry Columbine / Mike Ward | easydate@redleafpr.com |
Notes to Editors
§ Easydate plc listed on AIM in June 2010 and is a leading provider of online dating services.
§ Easydate has built a base of over 13 million registrants and over 9 million members in 29 countries (those countries with over 1,000 members), with a growing proportion of members coming from outside of the United Kingdom.
§ Easydate offers a wide variety of online dating services allowing members to interact with each other and access the content available on the Group's websites. These websites are intended to appeal to dating users of diverse ages, cultures and social interest groups. The Group's most heavily visited websites include www.benaughty.com, www.cupid.com, www.girlsdateforfree.com and www.datetheuk.com. The Group also promotes the niche brands www.datingforparents.com, www.speeddater.com and www.maturedating.co.uk
§ Further information on the Company can be found at www.easydategroup.com