TV Producer Clinches Deal with Dating Service
Thu Jul 17, 1:19 AM ET
Global online dating service MatchNet is getting hot and heavy with the broadcast arena, launching a strategic alliance with TV producer Matthew Papish, president of Los Angeles-based Pipeline Entertainment.
The alliance represents Papish`s third foray into television production stemming from successful dot-com ventures, he said Wednesday in announcing the deal in tandem with MatchNet.
The deal gives Papish the domestic and international rights to create reality-based TV programs based on any and all of MatchNet`s global network of online properties, which currently include AmericanSingles.com, CollegeLuv.com, MatchNet.co.uk and JDate.com.
Papish is creator and an executive producer of Twentieth Television`s new syndicated release "Classmates," which is based on the Web site of the same name. He was also creator and one of the executive producers on "Blind Date," which also had a dot-com tie-in.
"I secured the rights from Classmates.com and sold `Classmates` to Twentieth Television, then set my sites on the multibillion-dollar online dating industry," Papish said.
"MatchNet.com has all the right elements for successful television -- enormous reach, audience loyalty, measurable traffic, impressions. But most important, it`s a vast source of real-life experiences that make truly compelling storytelling."Papish added that the convergence of broadcast television with dot-coms "creates a new, unique and powerful entertainment model with a huge upside for everybody."
MatchNet CEO and co-founder Joe Shapira added: "Online dating has become a widely used Internet application for singles all over the world. Our new endeavor with Pipeline Entertainment will bring the excitement of this successful facility to television and help expand the user base."
Papish said that the online dating industry generates about $302 million in revenues annually and that MatchNet`s share of that market has grown significantly during the past two years.
He added that he will be launching the format for worldwide sales at the international TV market MIPCOM in October and is looking at various potential outlets in the domestic market, including syndication, cable and network.
The production and marketing model provides a dual platform for advertisers with the Internet and the broadcast platforms available, he added.
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
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LOS ANGELES, July 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Matthew D. Papish, President of Pipeline Entertainment, the leader in "convergence television" announced today that he has established a strategic alliance with MatchNet(R) plc (MHJG: Frankfurt Stock Exchange - Prime Standard), one of the largest providers of online dating and relationship services worldwide. Convergence television is the ability to turn successful websites into broadcast television shows. The alliance gives Papish the domestic and international rights to create reality-based television programs based on any and all of MatchNet``s global network of online properties, which include AmericanSingles(R).com, CollegeLuvTM.com, GlimpseTM.com, MatchNet.co.uk, JDate(R).com, and others. The partnership was brokered by Europlay Capital Advisors ("ECA" a merchant bank and advisory firm specializing in small and mid-cap entertainment, media and technology sector companies.
Papish is the creator and executive producer of popular television shows including "Blind Date," and "Classmates," a new Twentieth Television/ Foxlab daily syndicated show that debuted on July 7. Classmates is the first television show to be based on a successful website, with the show``s concept and content driven directly by the website and its 35+ million registered users.
"I secured the rights from Classmates.com and sold ``Classmates`` to Twentieth Television, then set my sites on the multi-billion dollar online dating industry," says Papish. "MatchNet has all the right elements for successful television -- enormous reach, audience loyalty, measurable traffic, impressions; but most important, it``s a vast source of real-life experiences that make truly compelling storytelling."
"Online dating has become a widely used Internet application for singles all over the world. Our new endeavor with Pipeline Entertainment will bring the excitement of this successful facility to television and help expand MatchNet``s member base," stated Joe Shapira, CEO and co-founder, MatchNet plc.
Papish says the convergence of broadcast television with dot-coms creates a new, unique and powerful entertainment model with a huge upside for everybody. "For audiences, the website will be ``the fourth act`` to the TV show -- after the show you can go online to find your soul mate and, perhaps, appear on a future show."
About Pipeline Entertainment:
Matthew D. Papish``s Pipeline Entertainment is leading a new standard in the migration of branded and online properties to television and film. Pipeline Entertainment is involved in linking and brokering media investment banking deals, creating new marketing and broadcast platforms for advertisers and consumers and developing media ventures outside the parameters of traditional programming. Pipeline Entertainment is exclusively represented by United Talent Agency (UTA) worldwide.
About MatchNet plc:
With over twelve million members worldwide, MatchNet plc is one of the largest providers of online dating services. The MatchNet network includes AmericanSingles.com, FaceLink(R).com, MatchNet.de, MatchNet.co.uk, and MatchNet.com.au. In addition, the Company operates JDate(R).com & JDate.co.il, the dominant Jewish dating services worldwide; gay11(R).com, an online dating service for relationship-minded gay men and women; and CollegeLuv.com, an exciting new online destination for the college-age demographic. MatchNet was incorporated in England in 1998. More information is available at www.matchnet.com/ .
About Europlay Capital Advisors ("ECA":
Europlay Capital Advisors ("ECA" is a merchant bank and advisory firm specializing in small and mid-cap entertainment, media and technology sector companies, including interactive entertainment, software, and film. From its offices in Los Angeles California, ECA provides services to clients based in the United States, Japan, Australia, and Europe related to mergers and acquisitions, restructurings and turnarounds, strategic partnerships, business development activities, and other intellectual property monetization and corporate development transactions. ECA is led by experienced executives drawn from the video game and interactive entertainment, media, investment banking and legal sectors.
Pipeline Entertainment; MatchNet
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