Higher dating services revenue boosts Barry Diller's IAC

[October 29, 2014]  (Reuters) - Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue and profit, helped by higher revenue from its dating websites and mobile apps, and its Vimeo video service. 

Shares of the company, which owns dating websites such as Match.com and OurTime.com and popular mobile app Tinder, rose about 4 percent in premarket trading.

The company said revenue from its dating services rose 5 percent in the third quarter ended Sept. 30. Paid subscribers across its dating websites grew 9 percent to 3.6 million.

Revenue from Vimeo surged 30 percent, with more paid subscribers tuning it to the service, IAC said in a statement.

However, revenue from IAC's Web search services, under which it operates websites such as Ask.com, About.com and Investopedia, fell 3 percent.

The business, which accounts for more than half of the company's total revenue, was hurt by lower revenue from Ask.com. The website has been facing intense competition mainly from Google Inc's search engine.

IAC's net income more than tripled to $326.8 million, or $3.68 per share, in the third quarter from $96.9 million, or $1.13 per share, a year earlier.

Revenue rose 3.3 percent to $782.2 million.

Excluding items, the company earned 92 cents per share.

Analysts on average had expected a profit of 66 cents per share and revenue of $751.7 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

IAC shares closed at $65.16 on the Nasdaq on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Sai Sachin R in Bangalore; Editing by Kirti Pandey)

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