EXCLUSIVE: Global Dating Insights Acquired by Courtland Brooks
Global Dating Insights (GDI), the leading news, intelligence and events platform for the global online dating industry, has been acquired by Courtland Brooks, the specialist online dating consultancy founded by industry veteran Mark Brooks.
The acquisition marks the beginning of a new chapter for GDI, almost 13 years after it was founded by Simon Corbett in late 2013.
Corbett launched Global Dating Insights after identifying the need for a dedicated B2B media platform covering the rapidly growing online dating industry.
What began as a specialist news website has since developed into an international media and events business, covering the companies, entrepreneurs, investors, technologies and trends shaping the global dating sector.
Over the past 13 years, the GDI editorial team has published thousands of news stories, interviews, features and analysis pieces, alongside the GDI Podcast, annual Power Book, special reports, newsletters and other industry content.
From London to the World
Events have become an equally important part of the GDI story.
Since launching its conference programme, GDI has brought together founders, CEOs, investors, product leaders and executives from many of the world’s leading dating businesses.
GDI conferences have been staged across London, Amsterdam, Los Angeles, New York, Singapore and San Francisco, and has welcomed speakers and attendees from many of the industry’s most influential companies, while its conferences, networking events and Leaders’ Lunches have helped create relationships and conversations across the global dating community.
The First Industry Insights Group Brand
GDI was also the first media brand within Industry Insights Group (IIG), the specialist B2B media group founded by Corbett.
The success of GDI helped establish the model that IIG has subsequently developed across a growing portfolio of specialist media brands: combining trusted industry journalism with events, conferences, reports, podcasts and engaged professional communities.
The sale of GDI therefore represents not only a new chapter for the brand, but an important milestone in the development of Industry Insights Group.
The acquisition by Courtland Brooks brings together two businesses that have worked closely within the online dating industry for many years.
Under the new ownership, Brooks will lead the next stage of GDI’s development, building on the publication’s editorial heritage, international audience and events platform.
Commenting on the announcement, Simon Corbett, Founder of Global Dating Insights, said: “When I started GDI in 2013, I could never have imagined where it would take us. What began as an idea for a specialist industry news website grew into a global community, with conferences around the world, thousands of stories published and relationships with some incredible entrepreneurs and businesses.
“I’m enormously proud of what we’ve achieved over the past 13 years and particularly grateful to every editor, journalist, salesperson and member of the GDI team who has helped build the business, as well as all of the speakers, sponsors, partners and readers who have supported us.
“GDI also has a special place in the story of Industry Insights Group. It was our first media brand and ultimately helped create the foundations for the business we have today. We’ve since built IIG into a growing portfolio of eight specialist B2B media brands across a number of industries, but GDI was where that journey began. It proved that there was an opportunity to build valuable media businesses around highly engaged specialist communities, combining great journalism with events, reports, podcasts and other products.
“Mark has been part of the online dating industry for many years and knows both GDI and the wider market extremely well. That made Courtland Brooks a natural home for the business.
“I’m very happy to be handing GDI over to Mark and I’m genuinely excited to see what he does with it next. For me, it’s also a proud moment to see the first brand in the IIG portfolio successfully move into new ownership. It feels like the right time for GDI to begin its next chapter, while we continue building the next chapter of Industry Insights Group.”
Mark Brooks, Founder and CEO of Courtland Brooks, said: “The acquisition comes as the global online dating sector enters another period of significant change, with AI, regulation, trust and safety, new approaches to monetisation and industry consolidation reshaping the market.
“GDI will continue to cover those developments and provide a platform for the executives, entrepreneurs and companies building the next generation of dating and social discovery businesses.”
For Corbett, the transaction brings to a close a remarkable 13-year journey at the helm of Global Dating Insights.
For GDI, it marks the beginning of the next one.
