March 2020 – Page 2 – Online Personals Watch

Dating Apps Adapt and Engage to Combat Isolation

Posted on March 28, 2020

MARKETING MAGAZINE – Mar 27 – Singapore-based dating agency Paktor Group has seen a 28% increase in its installation rates in Singapore as compared to the previous year. There was also a 17% increase in app engagement during this period, with users logging into the app more frequently throughout the day. Meanwhile, Tinder has also seen an increase in its app engagement since mid-March. Its in-app conversation length saw an increase of 10% to 30% in Southeast Asia and Europe markets, as compared to February. Globally it has also seen daily messages increase by 10% to 15% in the United States, and an increase of up to 25% in daily conversation in Italy and Spain. On the other hand, Coffee Meets Bagel's founder and CEO, Dawoon Kang, said it saw an initial dip in its new user signups from mid to end February in Singapore, which recovered in March.

by Grace Ong
See full article at Marketing Magazine

See the top news on Tinder
See the top news on Coffee Meets Bagel
See the top news on Paktor

US iPhone App Store Spending Per User Doubled Between 2016 and 2019

Posted on March 28, 2020

APPLE INSIDER – Mar 26 – iPhone owners increased their App Store spending to an average of $100 per person in 2019, up 27% from 2018. This number comes from premium app purchases and in-app purchases, not including sales of goods like products from Amazon, or Uber rides. Subscriptions made up $3.6B of revenue from the top 100 subscription apps alone.

by Wesley Hilliard
See full article at Apple Insider

Bumble Is Giving Away £5,000 Grants to 150 Small Businesses in Need

Posted on March 27, 2020

STANDARD.CO.UK – Mar 27 – As the UK goes into lockdown, with only 'essential' services allowed to remain open, small businesses are taking a hard hit. Bumble is asking its users to nominate local small businesses in need. Bumble has decided to give 150 grants of up to £5K to small businesses. Grants will be awarded across the world. Bumble says it will 'prioritise businesses led by women and non-binary founders'.

by Laura Hampson
See full article at Standard.co.uk

See the top news on Bumble

Swiping Right on Match Now

Posted on March 27, 2020

SEEKING ALPHA – Mar 24 – People are forced to date online now, especially since they're cooped up in their houses, and this is going to benefit Match in the short term. Over the long run, Match has many growth catalysts like international markets or its other apps that should allow it to continue expanding revenue and margins. Match Group has always been too expensive over the past few months, trading at close to a 50x PE despite just modest growth. Well, now the company has fallen substantially from highs and is trading at just over 30x PE, making it much more attractive to buy. Data shows that Tinder downloads have increased by 13% in the US over the past week, but most other dating apps saw a decline in downloads worldwide. Perhaps people default to downloading Tinder as it is the most popular dating app.

See full article at Seeking Alpha

See the top news on Match Group

How Coronavirus Is Transforming Online Dating

Posted on March 27, 2020

MIT TECHNOLOGY REVIEW – Mar 25 – Dating apps have struggled; after all, the whole point of dating is to physically meet someone. Match has seen stocks tumble 25%, and had to balance public health with mission statements. "Tinder understands that our members are oftentimes meeting new people in-person, and, given the current environment, we wanted to remind them of the precautions they should take," the company said in a press release, citing the World Health Organization. The firm is now rolling out a feature that lets users match with people outside their immediate geographical area. Whitney Wolfe Herd, the founder of dating app Bumble, was far more explicit in a public letter: "Please date virtually for now." One way to do it is by reinventing the speed date. Dawoon Kang, cofounder of Coffee Meets Bagel, says the app has begun hosting virtual meetups for 10 to 15 members at a time, consisting of a video call moderated by a company representative. A participant who is interested in another can email the representative; if two people feel sparks, the representative connects them.

by Tanya Basu
See full article at MIT Technology Review

See the top news on Tinder See the top news on Match Group
See the top news on Coffee Meets Bagel See the top news on Bumble

FreeFriendsOnline.com Launched to Keep Those Vulnerable to COVID-19 Connected

Posted on March 27, 2020

PRESS RELEASE – Mar 24 – FreeFriendsOnline.com, a completely free online social networking and companionship site, has been launched by White Label Dating to ensure those most vulnerable to COVID-19 stay connected. The site is designed for people aged over 70 The site supports the sending and receiving of messages, an online chat feature and the opportunity for its members to write diary entries that can be shared with others.

See full article at WLD website

See the top news on WhiteLabelDating

During Coronavirus Lockdown, Tinder Surpasses Bumble, OkCupid and Hinge Downloads

Posted on March 25, 2020

FOX BUSINESS – Mar 25 – While many businesses have suffered dramatically under the coronavirus, its been a great week for Tinder, which saw an increase in first-time installations of the app in the U.S., according to Sensor Tower. First-time installs of Tinder were up 13% last week in the U.S. compared to the week of March 2, but were down 5% worldwide for the same comparison period. Bumble's downloads fell 10% in the U.S. and 11% worldwide, Hinge downloads fell 7% in the U.S. and 12% worldwide, and OkCupid fell 16% in U.S. and down 20% worldwide.

by Lucas Manfredi
See full article at Fox Business

See the top news on Tinder See the top news on OkCupid
See the top news on Hinge See the top news on Bumble

Match Sets up Advice Hotline for Dating in Age of Social Distancing

Posted on March 25, 2020

THE MOTLEY FOOL – Mar 25 – Match Group is launching The Dating While Distancing Hotline, a free service where daters can chat live with an expert for free about concerns they have regarding the current dating scene. Callers can get advice on how to navigate quarantines, setting up successful video dates, and more. Match's advice hotline number is 888-302-6224 and is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. CST.

by Rich Duprey
See full article at The Motley Fool

See the top news on Match Group

App Annie Announces Top Publishers 2020

Posted on March 25, 2020

PR NEWSWIRE – Mar 24 – In its Top Publisher Award, App Annie recognizes the most innovative and successful publishers around the world. The Top 52 Publishers, as measured by app store revenue estimates in the last calendar year, are from 12 countries. Again this year, publishers from Asia dominate the list. The United States had the most top publishers of any country, with 17. "Dating apps have had strong growth on mobile for the past several years," said Justine Sacco, Chief Communications Officer for the Match Group (IAC). "To have Tinder as the top ranked app of all non-gaming apps globally, proves how central mobile experiences are to our customers and to our success."