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Month: September 2022
Indian Matchmaking Opens up for LGBT Community
MONEYCONTROL – Eyeing the LGBTQIA+ community, Matrimony.com has launched a platform called RainbowLuv which lets users look for serious relationships unlike casual matches offered by online dating apps. The idea came from a member of the LGBT community who went up to the company's chief product officer at a conference urging them to open up matchmaking for the community. The new platform is similar to their other matrimony apps which let users give detailed information for their profile. In addition, users can specify if they are looking for hook-ups or serious relationships. Then there is government-approved ID verification.
Hello Group Targets Tantan Breakeven in 2023
SEEKING ALPHA – Hello Group saw its revenue drop 15% in Q3, and forecast a similar decline in the third. The company's strategy involves a turnaround at its loss-making Tantan, which aims to break even by 2023 by cutting costs and rolling out new functions. The company attributed its sluggish business partly to the resurgence of Covid-19. China's tightening regulation of live streaming businesses with new rules implemented early this year also dealt a heavy blow to the company. Its "live video service" revenue – responsible for about half of its total – fell ~30% to 1.5B yuan YOY during the last quarter. Before announcing a name change last August, Hello was known as Momo and has a history dating back to 2011 when its Tinder-style Momo app first took China's dating scene by storm. In 2018, the company paid $760M to add another "meet-up" app called Tantan to its portfolio.
See full article at Seeking Alpha
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TrulyMadly Attracted 11M Users
INC42 – TrulyMadly claims to be an Indian leading serious dating app. 54% of its new users and 42% of its revenue come from Tier 2 and Tier 3 locations. The dating services sector in India is estimated to clock $387.6M in revenue in 2022. TrulyMadly was launched in Feb 2014. The app has attracted 11M registered users and targets $100M in revenue by 2026. TrulyMadly has a trust score ranging from 0-100% which ensures that the profiles are not fake. The app authenticates them by verifying user data, including name, gender, age, relationship status, education, profession, and photo. The higher the trust score, the better the profile visibility. The company has adopted a freemium model and claims that 3-3.5% of its non-paying users turn into paid members after 30 days. Recently, the app has created TM Cafe, a video chat for paid members, where users can interact with others through audio/video calls. The call automatically disconnects at the 90th second, and users can decide whether they want to match. The platform raised two rounds of funding. The first was $1.1M in pre-Series and in April 2021, another $2.1M was raised. The company is now preparing for overseas expansion.
How Bumble Chief Customer Officer Turns User Insights Into Product Updates
FORTUNE – This month marks the 10-year anniversary of the swipe which hit the scene with Tinder in Sep 2012. But what once was exciting has become routine, and dating app users feel "burned out". That sentiment has forced online dating businesses to improve their products. Bumble continues to build for its core demographic of women, with some updates. Charley Webb, the company's chief customer officer, is tasked with these updates. Although Bumble is tight-lipped about new product features that are influenced by the app's findings, Webb says their own research has helped the company "hone in on key areas" to address. Understanding the social, political, and family issues that are on users' minds helps Bumble build for those realities, she adds. Bumble's core proposition – that women make the first move is also getting an update. The app introduced more gender identification options in June.
by Emma Hinchliffe & Paige McGlauflin
See full article at Fortune
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Google to Allow Alternative Payment Systems in More Countries
TECH CRUNCH – Google is expanding the user choice billing program for Play Store, which lets users choose alternative payment systems for in-app purchases, to India, Australia, Indonesia, Japan, and the European Economic Area. The company is calling all non-gaming developers globally to apply for this program, and if they qualify, they can use third-party payment systems in the above-mentioned regions.
Meete: the Dating App Where Women Are Paid to Talk to Men
VICE.COM – It looks like a normal dating app, but with a crucial difference: Women make money off every message they send and receive. The app is totally free for women to use, but the men using the app have to purchase "gems" in order to match and message women. One message costs ~35c. Men can send virtual gifts, which translates into points women can convert into cash. Megan (18) claims to have earned ~£3,600 through talking to men on the app in 6 months. Meete claims to have 17M users. Users have to be 18 to sign up to Meete, although, concerningly, an image on its App Store description refers to it specifically as "a dating app for teens". With online grooming reaching record-high levels in 2021, it's arguable that the app might just end up causing more problems than it solves for young women in vulnerable financial positions.
Barry Diller Sold All His Match Group Shares for $1.9B
FORBES – Barry Diller, the founder and chairman of IAC, has cut ties to Match Group. He sold off his entire stake in Match Group for $1.9B throughout 2021. Diller's net worth is $4B after the sale, Forbes estimates. He continues to hold stakes in a handful of other public companies including IAC, Expedia, Vimeo and Coca Cola.
Hinge Is Launching in Germany
CASCHYS BLOG – Hinge, a dating app that is designed to be deleted, is now available in Germany. In 2021, Hinge was among the fastest-growing apps in the US, UK, and Australia.
by André Westphal
See full article at Caschys Blog