Month: October 2020
How Working From Home Makes Us Responsible and Productive – Dmitriy Volkov
INC – Oct 28 – Covid is eating us from the inside. This will continue for an indefinite time: a year and a half. Someone will adapt. When everyone switched to remote work, the question began to torment me: how many invisible e-employees and e-part-timers do I have? Those who will manage to do nothing or receive two or three salaries from different organizations for full-time work. 90% of my their effectiveness has increased. I asked managers .
In 2013, a large-scale experiment in China showed that if employees worked from home 4 out of 5 working days, their productivity increased. Workers are less distracted at home. Another study concluded those working from home were more satisfied, productive and loyal to the employer, and became more autonomous – it became easier for them to make decisions.
- At home, I myself determine what and when to work. This allows me to focus better.
- Now I can make decisions not only during working hours, but also in the evening and in the morning.
- Now I am not distracted by my colleague Eva when she cuts her nails on my desk.
Consider your…
- transparency of communications
- clear areas of responsibility
- trust between managers and subordinates
- open access to information
Tinder’s Opt-in Video Chat Feature Is Rolling out Globally
TECH CRUNCH – Oct 27 – Face to Face, an opt-in-only feature that Tinder launched earlier this year that lets users video chat with each other without exchanging personal information and only when they're facing the cam, is now expanding globally. Both parties need to be opted into the feature, and they have to be matched before a video chat can be initiated.
Coalition of App Developers Taking Aim at Apple Is Growing Rapidly
CULT OF MAC – Oct 27 – The Coalition for App Fairness, a group of developers targeting what they claim is Apple's unfair control of the App Store, has more than doubled in size since its formation last month. According to a new report, the original group of 13 companies – which included the likes of Epic Games, Spotify and Match Group – has now increased to 40, with another 400 requests to join. The coalition has what it refers to as the 10 App Store Principles. The App Store has been investigated by politicians in both the U.S. and Europe.
Dating Site for Men With Small Penises Gets 30K Members in Two Days
IB TIMES – Oct 27 – The UK- based website Dinky One joined the bandwagon of dating services in March and has attracted ~30K members in just two days after it was launched. The dating site caters to all genders and sexualities with a fifth of the men who have since signed up identified as gay or bisexual. It is free to sign up and photographs are not required from users. However, everyone must provide a valid email address. Sharing of nudes on the dating app is also prohibited.
by Nina Siena
See full article at IB Times
BlueCity CEO on His Journey to Creating the First Publicly Listed LGBTQ+ Social Network
BUSINESS INSIDER – Oct 27 – BlueCity is the owner of Blued, the first LBGTQ+-focused social network to go public. It was at a market value of ~$600M. CEO Ma Baoli began his career as a policeman in China before creating his own social network in 2000.
Q: Your first job was as a policeman. How did you make the transition into the tech industry?
A: When the Internet boom hit China in 1998, I started to search for answers. Through the Internet I discovered that homosexuality was not an illness or a disorder. The predecessor of Blued is the website Danlan.com, which I founded in 2000, and was one of China's first and most influential LGBTQ online forums. In 2012, when I saw the big shift from the PC internet to mobile Internet, we launched the Blued app.
Q: How do you plan to expand Blued in the future?
A: We hope to refine and expand our current health services, and feel confident that they will eventually reach users around the world. We also plan to serve different subgroups within the broader LGBTQ+ community, as seen in our recent acquisition of LESDO, a leading Lesbian social-networking app.
Q: What has been the impact of growing restrictions on Chinese companies in the US and other countries?
A: Our staff are working closely with external consultancies and stakeholders to make sure that we are fully compliant with local laws and regulations in markets where we operate.
Q: What impact do you think Blued has had for the LGBT community in China and beyond?
A: We are more than just a social network, dating app or a live streaming platform. Blued is a safe zone for people in the LGBTQ+ community to obtain public health information especially about HIV testing, prevention and education.
Deals During Covid and Investing in Founders Without Meeting IRL
FORBES – Oct 27 – VCs now take their pitches over a safely-distanced Zoom call. But VC funding for female founders has dropped to a three-year low. Firms invested ~$434M in Q3, the lowest figure since the Q2 of 2017, according to PitchBook data. The Q2 total also amounts to a 48% drop in funding from Q2, when female founders received $841M across 132 deals. There are VC firms that focus exclusively on female founders, such as Female Founders Fund (FFF). Founded in 2014, the NYC-based firm has raised two funds to date (~$6M and ~$25M) and counts 40+ companies in its portfolio. One deal FFF closed during the lockdown is Lex, a text-based social app for queer, non-binary and trans communities. Other investors that joined in alongside FFF include Peanut's Michelle Kennedy and the Bumble Fund. Through her app, Lex founder Kell Rakowski is reframing the dating experience from a visual-based to a text-based experience, bringing back old-school personal ads to social media. The current version of Lex has zero photos and no swiping. The NYC-based startup recently closed its seed round of $1.5M, which was led by FFF.
Momo Announces New CEO
PR NEWSWIRE – Oct 23 – Momo, a leading mobile social networking platform in China, announced that its board of directors has approved Mr. Yan Tang to step down from the CEO position, and promoted Mr. Li Wang to this position. Mr. Wang was serving as the President and COO of Momo. Mr. Yan Tang will become the executive chairman of the board of directors of Momo.
Vegan Dating App Veggly Exceeds 200K Global Users
PLANT BASED NEWS – Oct 26 – Vegan and vegetarian dating app Veggly says it has witnessed its growth eightfold in the last 16 months. The app has exceeded 200K global users.
Cobble, Dating App for Couples, Raises $3M
NEW YORK BUSINESS JOURNAL – Oct 24 – The app said the funding came from a group of investors including Kerr Tech Investments. Cobble, which is available in New York City, helps couples decide on things like what restaurants to go to, what movies to watch and what books to read. "We are trying to make it easier for couples to make decisions and communicate," said Jordan Scott, Cobble's founder and CEO. The app is hiring and plans to roll out into new cities in the near future.
by Ben Miller
See full article at New York Business Journal
This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.com