17 Nov 2010 07:00
Date: | 17 November 2010 |
On behalf of: | Easydate plc ('Easydate' or 'the Company') |
Embargoed until: | 0700hrs |
Easydate plc
Trading update
Easydate plc (AIM:EZD), the internet-based dating operator, is pleased to give a trading update. As reported on 22 September 2010, the first six months of 2010 demonstrated strong growth. With a further eight weeks of trading since then, the Company is pleased to report that this trend has continued.
In the first nine months of 2010, revenues have grown at over 30% per quarter (excluding the acquisition of Cupid.com in late September). In addition, the Company has continued to increase marketing spend by over 30% each quarter as its online marketing campaigns are showing consistently strong returns. Much of this increased investment in marketing has been made in North America where the Company is building on the strength of several of its core brands including Cupid.com.
This international expansion is an important element of the Company's plans. The percentage of total revenues which come from outside the UK continues to increase, with approximately 25% of current run rate revenues now generated from international markets (H1 2010:approximately 20%, FY 2009:approximately 13%).
So far this year, the Company has made two main acquisitions. In March 2010, Allegran was purchased from the Daily Mail General Trust plc and in September 2010 Cupid.com Inc was purchased from OnTargetJobs Inc. Both acquisitions are performing well. Monthly revenues from Allegran have grown from around £180,000 at acquisition to currently around £420,000. Cupid.com is central to Easydate's expansion into North America and mainstream online dating, and results in the first eight weeks post acquisition are promising.
As well as the international growth and the progress with the two acquisitions, the Company has continued to grow organically within the UK, with monthly revenues currently 70% higher than at the start of 2010.
With the business continuing to perform strongly, the Directors look forward to the end of 2010 with confidence and expect further healthy growth in 2011.
For further information please contact:
Easydate plc | Tel: +44 (0)131 220 1313 |
Bill Dobbie, CEO Mark Doughty, CFO and Company Secretary | |
Cenkos Securities plc | |
Ken Fleming | Tel: +44 (0)131 220 6939 |
Beth McKiernan | |
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.cupid.com, www.benaughty.com, www.girlsdateforfree.com and www.flirt.com. The Group also promotes niche brands such as www.datingforparents.com and www.maturedating.co.uk
§ Further information on the Company can be found at www.easydategroup.com