Joe (Yoav) Shapira () is a

digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, viewed, distributed, modified, listened to, an ...

entrepreneur who resides in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

, Israel, and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Early life

Shapira was born and raised in Givataim, Israel. He graduated in 1972 from Ort Yad Singalovsky, and enlisted in the

Israeli Air Force The Israeli Air Force (IAF; , commonly known as , ''Kheil HaAvir'', "Air Corps") operates as the aerial and space warfare branch of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Indep ...

, and received an honourable discharge after three years of service, during the

Yom Kippur war The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...

in 1973. In 1979 Shapira immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and commenced a career as an

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entreprene ...

Business career

Sha-Rub Investment Co.

Shapira's first notable venture was Sha-Rub Investment Co., founded in 1981 with his cousin, Sheila C. Ruby. The company acquired distressed real properties, renovated and resold them in a rapidly appreciating market.

Matrix Video Corporation

In 1987 Shapira founded Matrix Video Corporation with Alon Carmel.

Videocassette recorder A videocassette recorder (VCR) or video recorder is an electromechanical device that records analog audio and analog video from broadcast television or other AV sources and can play back the recording after rewinding. The use of a VCR to reco ...

s were selling at the retail market and Shapira predicted an expanding demand for blank and pre-recorded video cassettes. The company soon became one of the largest manufacturers of blank and pre-recorded

video cassettes Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving visual media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) system ...

in the West Coast and later executed an

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...

(IPO) of its shares on the

Tel Aviv Stock Exchange The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE; ), colloquially known as The Bursa, is the only public stock exchange in Israel and a public company itself, listed on its own exchange since August 1, 2019. It is regulated by the ''Securities Law (1968)'' a ...

Jdate.com

Shapira's most notable venture, Jdate.com, was founded in 1996 with Alon Carmel (incorporated later as Matchnet PLC). Jdate rapidly expanded to dominate

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

online dating Online dating, also known as internet dating, virtual dating, or mobile app dating, is a method used by people with a goal of searching for and interacting with potential romantic or sexual partners, via the internet. An online dating service ...

outside of

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. Led by Shapira, as

chairman of the board The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a Board of directors, board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by ...

and

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

, Matchnet raised close to $50 million, including in an IPO of its shares on the Frankfurt (Germany) Stock Exchange, using these funds to consolidate the internet dating space during 2000–2005 via 12 acquisitions totaling more than $30 million. Leveraging on this acquisition as well as creative large-scale marketing techniques, Matchnet expanded rapidly and reached a customer base of more than 20 million to position itself as a global leader in the online dating business. Shapira also led the expansion of Jdate into Israel and the later acquisition of its main Israeli competitor, Cupid.co.il.

Fiix

This is a new venture he has founded recently which is a new Jewish dating app to complement the mobile lifestyle of the new generation. By 2004 Matchnet reached $70 million in revenues, exceeded $400 million in

market capitalization Market capitalization, sometimes referred to as market cap, is the total value of a publicly traded company's outstanding common shares owned by stockholders. Market capitalization is equal to the market price per common share multiplied by ...

, and employed more than 400 personnel in four locations in the US, Europe and Israel. In 2005 Matchnet reverse-merged into the newly formed

Spark Networks Spark Networks GmbH is an American-German dating company with a portfolio of brands designed for singles seeking serious relationships. These online dating brands include Zoosk, SilverSingles, EliteSingles, Jdate, ChristianMingle, eDarling, JSw ...

Inc., and listed for trading on the

American Stock Exchange NYSE American, formerly known as the American Stock Exchange (AMEX), and more recently as NYSE MKT, is an American stock exchange situated in New York City. AMEX was previously a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1953, it was known ...

(AMEX). In 2005 Shapira recruited professional management to replace him as CEO and in 2006 he resigned from the company.

Pro-Israel activities

Shapira has engaged in pro-Israel activities, via the

American Israel Public Affairs Committee The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC ) is a pro-Israel lobbying group that advocates its policies to the legislative and executive branches of the United States. It is one of several pro-Israel lobbying organizations in the ...

and

US politics In the United States, politics functions within a framework of a constitutional federal republic, federal democratic republic with a presidential system. The three distinct branches Separation of powers, share powers: United States Congress, C ...

. He served as a member of the Republican Senatorial Inner Circle Commission and in May 2008, Shapira and his former wife, Nickie, participated in the Presidential Honorary Delegation to Israel's 60th birthday celebration that was led by President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

. During his years as a chairman and CEO of Matchnet, Shapira led Jdate and its customer base, through pro-Israel activation, to become a leading force in the global Jewish community. The

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

-based ''

The Jewish Daily Forward ''The Forward'' (), formerly known as ''The Jewish Daily Forward'', is an American news media organization for a Jewish American audience. Founded in 1897 as a Yiddish-language daily socialist newspaper, ''The New York Times'' reported that Set ...

'' pronounced Shapira in 2006 as "one of the 50 most influential Jews in America", saying “The Beverly Hills-based Shapira may be doing more to further the cause of Jewish continuity than anyone else on earth”. Shapira was also recognized as ORT America's "outstanding member of the year". Shapira resides in Israel, engaged in the mentoring of young aspiring digital and mobile technology entrepreneurs.

Personal life

Shapira has three children from his first wife."JDate Founder Seeks Fresh Start"
Globes business newspaper, 2014.

References

External links

The Philadelphia Jewish voice article on JDateSpark Networks websiteJdate website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shapira, Joe Israeli businesspeople Living people People from Givatayim Year of birth missing (living people)