UNIVERSE – House Bill 18, requiring online dating apps based in Utah to include helpful safety tips and reminders, progressed to the Senate on Jan. 25. Adoption of this bill would also mean that dating apps would be required to disclose whether they are conducting background checks on their users.
by Anna Hair
See full article at Universe
BBC – In Egypt, homosexuality is highly stigmatized, and there have long been allegations that police are hunting LGBT people online. There is no explicit law against homosexuality in Egypt, but BBC investigation has found that the crime of "debauchery" – a sex work law – is used to criminalize the LGBT community. It is extremely difficult for LGBT people to openly meet potential dates in public in Egypt, so dating apps are a popular way to do that. But just using the apps can be grounds for arrest based on the incitement of debauchery or public morality laws in Egypt.
PRESS RELEASE – Jamie Wykes-Hobday, founder of the company, has been backed by an impressive support network in his mission to build a community for dating, relationships, casual meets, and friendships. In the past 12 months, the company welcomed OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely, who invested at a £3M valuation, followed by successful gaming YouTubers Sam Harry ("Chaotic") and Martin Wood ("SXVXN"), who will support the brand as they enter the content-creator space. The brand now has 20+ investors within the network, all aged under 40.
NEW YORK POST – Around one in five people run background checks on their online dates before meeting them, a new survey says. 38% of respondents say they "stalk" their first dates online instead. The survey was conducted by the Thriving Center of Psychology. 35% of the survey's participants revealed they do not feel safe when using dating apps, despite 67% claiming to have used them at one point. However, of those who have used platforms like Hinge, Bumble and Tinder, 69% despise the apps.
TECH CRUNCH – Match Group is bringing on former VP of Product at Snap Will Wu as its new CTO in a newly created role. Wu will oversee product innovation across Match's portfolio of apps. Match says Wu will now work directly with its executives to launch new features, emerging technologies, and innovative products. Gary Swidler, who was previously the COO and CFO of Match, will become the president and CFO of the Group. In addition, Malgosia Green, who was previously CEO of Plenty of Fish, will become CEO of Match Group Asia. Hesam Hosseini, the CEO of Match and Affinity brands, will become CEO of Evergreen & Emerging Brands. In this position, Hosseini will oversee Match, Meetic, Plenty of Fish and OkCupid, in addition to emerging brands such as The League, BLK and Chispa. Last, Justin McLeod, the founder & CEO of Hinge, will now report directly to Kim.
THE CUT – Asking a dating exec how their matchmaking algorithm works is like asking Coca-Cola for its top-secret formula. Tinder says that it looks at things like app usage, profile details, and swipe history to find matches. Bumble also says it looks at swipe history, while Hinge didn't say much, except that its "proprietary algorithm" was based on work done by two Nobel Prize–winning mathematicians. In episode three of Land of the Giants: Dating Games, we dive into just how these algorithms work and speak with daters who are trying to hack the code that controls their love lives. Listen to the latest episode of Land of the Giants: Dating Games, a co-production between the Cut, The Verge, and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
by Sangeeta Singh-Kurtz & Lakshmi Rengarajan
See full article at The Cut
GIZMODO – A roundtable discussion was held in Sydney to come up with ways to curb harassment on dating platforms. Ministers, victim-survivors, tech companies, and authorities met online with representatives of Bumble and Tinder. Australia's eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, has warned dating apps that they need to make significant changes and improvements to protect users or face a mandatory code. She's calling on dating apps to be more transparent with their data and what additional safety measures they will implement. Bumble said it had implemented security measures in recent years including a block and report tool that allows users to report any suspicious behavior, photo verification, and Private Detector, which uses AI to detect and blur potentially crude images. The company has also released Private Detector on GitHub, allowing other apps to access the tool. Tinder has photo verification, anti-harassment prompts, and a Trust and Safety team to mediate any reports of concerning behavior on the app. The company also created the Match Group Advisory Council in 2018 to advise Tinder on preventing sexual assault, sex trafficking, and harassment.
by Nikki Main
See full article at Gizmondo
See the top news on Match Group
See the top news on Tinder
See the top news on Bumble
OPW – Edition 19 of the LTR (Love, Tech, Relationships) online experience will be on Wed 1st February at 12 noon EST (New York time). In this edition, we will hear from Geoff Cook, CEO/Co-Founder of The Meet Group & co-CEO of ParshipMeet Group, on the topic of "Stepping Stones to Innovation", followed by Carmelia Ray, a celebrity matchmaker, on "The future of content marketing, social selling, and brand recognition through TV and media."
We have a half-hour of networking on virtual tables, followed by 50 mins of presentations, and then another short networking session. 1.5 hours all-in.
If you hold a full-time leadership role at an Internet dating company then you are welcome to join IDEA for free and welcome to join LTR events for free.
See the LTR Edition 19 speakers and invite page here
Email mark@courtlandbrooks.com to RSVP.
This LTR is kindly sponsored by technology providers Livebox by The Meet Group, RealGifts, Courtland Brooks and Matchmaker.com
SEEKING ALPHA – Grindr went public with an overvaluation of $2.1B through a SPAC deal, leaving only 500K shares available for the public to trade. While the stock has imploded, we should not disregard that Grindr has a scalable business model with large profit margins and the ability to generate serious cash. It is the largest LGBTQ social and networking app, with ~11M users exchanging ~12B messages per day. It is growing faster than direct online dating peers, with 32% YOY revenue growth and 42% YOY paid user growth.