DUTCH TECH MAGAZINE – Apr 7 – In the Netherlands, Tinder is downloaded on average 46,854 times a month. Last year there were more than half a million Tinder downloads (566,946). The number of singles in the Netherlands is growing steadily with an average increase of 1.7% over the past five years. Last year there were ~3M singles in the Netherlands. 50% of the Dutch daters have downloaded Tinder. Badoo comes second with a 25% share. Lexa.nl (18%), Happn (15%) and Relatieplanet (11%) fill the top five most popular dating apps.
Category: All UK & Europe
Belgium Seeks to Punish Owner of ‘Sugar Daddy’ Site
AGENCE PRESSE FRANCE – Apr 5 – Belgian prosecutors are seeking a suspended prison sentence for Sigurd Vedal, an entrepreneur accused of promoting prostitution through a dating site for rich men and young women – RichMeetBeautiful.com. He appeared in court on Thursday. In 2017, as students returned to the Free University of Brussels after their summer break, they were greeted by a truck carrying a mobile advertising hoarding. The poster showed a woman's bosom barely covered by a bra and the slogan: "Hey female students, improve your lifestyle, go out with a Sugar Daddy." The truck was seized after the university complained to the police, and Vedal has since been arrested and charged with "incitement to debauchery and prostitution". He insisted that he simply wanted to encourage customers to seek dates that were "out of the ordinary." In addition to a six-month suspended sentence, prosecutors asked that Vedal be fined 40K Eur and his company Digisec Media a further 250K Eur. The Belgian court will give its verdict on May 8. Vedal is also under investigation in France, accused of "aggravated pimping" after publicising a version of his site on a Paris campus.
by Matthieu Demeestere
See full article at The Jakarta Post
One in Five Men Admit to Snooping on a Loved One’s Smartphone
DAILYMAIL.CO.UK – Apr 3 – Experts from the University of South Wales surveyed 2K people in the UK. One in five men said they waited until their partner was asleep to use their fingerprint to unlock their phone. More than half of those who snooped on their partner discovered something that led them to believe they had cheated. Almost six in ten indicated that sexting should be considered cheating while 40% felt it was not.
by Victoria Bell
See full article at DailyMail.co.uk
Once Launched Once Again, a Dating App for Users 50+
LADN.EU – Apr 1 – Slow dating app Once is launching a new app for users in their 50s. The app is called Once Again. 88% of Once users who spend more than 30 minutes a day on the app are over 50 years old. The fifties also represents 34% of the user base of the app.
Dating App Hily Officially Launches in the UK
PRESS RELEASE – Mar 11 – Hily, the US dating app that stands for "Hey, I Like You", is launching in the UK this week. Hily provides a high level of safety and security through profile verification. The unique feature of the app is the usage of AI. Hily analyses users' likes, matches, and dialogues to create a personalized set of potential partners.
Dating App “Bare” Lets Users Share Nude Pics but Asks for ID First
DAILYSTAR.CO.UK – Mar 11 – A new dating app on which users can choose to share naked pictures of themselves is set to launch in the UK. The dating app's owners said giving people the choice to bare all could give it an edge over Tinder and Bumble. But users will not be able to immediately share nude snaps with each other – which BARE's founders say will ease users' fears of receiving unsolicited photos. Members would need to provide ID before using the app. Bare is set to launch this summer.
The UK Government Is Looking to Criminalize Unsolicited Dick Pics
THE NEXT WEB – Mar 8 – The Home Office is taking preliminary steps towards criminalizing "online flashing." In its "Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)" report, the Home Office proposed 10 commitments it believes will help protect women and girls in the UK – and it's backed with ~ £100M in funding over the next five years. By law, it's considered "indecent exposure" to flash your naked body on the street – and it shouldn't be excused online. In the UK, 41% of women aged 18 to 36 have reportedly received non-consensual sexual images.
Dating App Hily to Launch in the UK
PRESS RELEASE – Feb 26 – Hily, a US-based dating app, is launching in the UK at the beginning of March. The unique feature of the app is the usage of AI. Hily analyses users' likes, matches, and dialogues to create a personalized set of potential partners. The more the users swipe, the smarter the machine gets and the higher are their chances to find someone special.
See full article at Internet Dating Newswire
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Jaumo, the 40M Users Dating App, Operates as a Lean, Bootstrapped Company
GRUENDERSZENE – Feb 13 – Almost every third German over 16 has ever used a dating service, according to a survey by Bitkom. Jens Kammerer and Benjamin Roth founded a social network (Kwick) 20 years ago. Now they run Jaumo, a dating app with 40M users – without VC-money and office. The app, which was launched in 2011, generated annual profit of ~1M Eur in 2017, and claims ~40M users in 180 countries, including ~2.7M in Germany. The app sees 130K – 170K new registrations a day. The company now employs 24 people but still doesn't have an office. "Every Friday we have a video call and discuss how the week went. In addition, we have a virtual coffee talk twice a month where we talk about private things. Once a year, we organize a meetup. Last time we were in Dubrovnik," says Jens Kammerer.
by Elisabeth Neuhaus
See full article at GruenderSzene
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50% of Brits Would Continue With a Date Even if They Didn’t Feel Safe
THE SUN – Jan 30 – Dating app Plenty of Fish compiled a Safer Dating report. Just 19% of the 2K adults asked would want to know if their date had a criminal record. And some 49% would stay on a date even if they felt unsafe. A third of people don't tell friends or family when they go on a date, or where they are going.