Males Driving Europe’s Summer of Mobile Love

*Mobile Dating Sites on the Rise, Males 25-34 Represent Nearly a Quarter of UsersItalians Lead European Countries in Seeking ‘Amore’ on their Mobiles*  

LONDON, U.K., August 26, 2010 – comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released data from its comScore MobiLens service showing that young adult males factor prominently in the increase in Europeans accessing dating sites on their mobile phones.

Of the nearly 11 million users accessing mobile dating services each month, 22 percent are males between the ages of 25-34 years old, compared to just 8.7 percent of females in the same age group. The June 2010 data from comScore shows that across Europe there has been a 52 percent increase in mobile access to dating sites since June 2009.  

Italians are Top Mobile Daters

Italians are the most active in looking for love on their mobile devices, with 7.1 percent (3.3 million) of users accessing dating services each month. The Spanish come in second with 6.1 percent (2.1 million) of users, followed by Germans with 3.9 percent (2.1 million users) and the French with 3.6 percent (1.7 million users). The UK ranks fifth with just 3.5 percent (1.7 million users) engaging with dating services via mobile.

Text Before Marriage

SMS is the most popular method of accessing mobile dating sites with 5.6 million users in June, ranking just above access via browser with 5.4 million users. Usage of apps for mobile dating is on the rise with 1.8 million mobile users in June, up 71 percent in the past year to outpace dating site access via SMS and browser.

“Many Europeans have turned to their phones to help find love this summer,” says comScore European VP Mobile, Jeremy Copp. “What’s surprising is how heavily skewed the sites’ audiences are to younger males, which creates a challenge for the category to attract more females and increase the possibility of a positive match.” 

He added: “Combined with the prevalence of the SMS as a tool for engaging with dating services and the relative small usage of mobile dating apps, these data illustrate the importance in knowing who your audience is and how they use your services.” 

June 2010 European Mobile Benchmark Data

Below is comScore’s June 2010 benchmark data, including a review of mobile consumption behaviours and device penetration for five EU countries. This benchmark data is published by comScore on a monthly basis to provide the most up-to-date snapshot of the mobile industry. Further information on this benchmark data, and other data included above, can be provided upon request.

*Source: comScore