CLIKZ NETWORK -- Feb 8 -- "Online Dating in 2006: Pricing Strategies to Drive Subscriber Growth" from JupiterResearch finds revenue growth is driven by higher monthly fees instead of new membership. 5% of Internet users pay for online dating subscriptions, down from 6% last year. More Internet users visit dating sites than join, and 1/3 of those who go to dating sites sign up for membership. "Sites are working hard to broaden their total audience," said Elliott. "If they get offline figures like Dr. Phil involved, more visitors will come to their sites [and convert]." Social networking communities potentially pose a safe alternative to dating sites, but the report doesn't see a significant threat. 14% of non-subscribing online daters use social networking sites for online dating.

Mark Brooks: OK folks here's the conversions of top dating sites. 10% of users who register profiles convert to paid members. This can range from just a couple of percent for a site that is below critical mass, to as high as 25% for a targeted site well beyond critical mass. eHarmony, Match, Jdate, TRUE etc are higher. A typical member sticks around for three months. Spark.net lists churn numbers which reflect this number. Retention is down...because hey, the industry is more effective at hooking people up these days ;-)