A Portland Internet startup is getting some buzz today after launching a new online dating site for "sex positive" people.
What's a sex positive person? Blackbox Republic co-founder Sam Lawrence -- the former head of marketing at Portland online collaboration startup Jive -- defines it in a blog post this way:
"If you’re sex positive, you’re a right-brained, creative person who doesn’t live life by someone else’s checklist," he writes. Sounds like something that would have started at Burning Man.
In fact, that's where Lawrence and co-founder April Donato conceived the idea.
The startup has already raised $1 million in angel financing as it sets out on a mission to help people find love through the Internet. That's a big business, with established players such as eHarmony, PerfectMatch and Match.com.
But Lawrence and Donato believe there are enough free spirits in the world -- the type of folks who gather at the Burning Man or Love Parade festivals -- to create a "social nichework" around the sex positive concept.
"Why isn't there such a thing as meaningful connections online? Social networks are a perpetual reunion. On dating sites, you’re a piece of meat. The sex-positive creative culture needs a home," the company writes on its site.
Blackbox certainly has the marketing angle down, with a flashy Web site that includes a nifty Twitter feed and a pretty blog. (Not to mention a map of their cross country sex positive tour.)
But details on how the business will operate are rather sparse, though ReadWriteWeb's Marshall Kirkpatrick says the company plans to charge $25 per month for members to join. A full launch is scheduled for later this year.
Now, I am a big believer that Seattle's startup community has a leg up on Portland in most instances. But Blackbox puts our friendly neighbors -- very friendly it appears -- to the south in the lead in the sex category. No wonder they call it the City of Roses.
John Cook is co-founder of TechFlash. (He is not yet a member of the sex positive movement). Follow him on Twitter @johnhcook.
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