PROTOCOL – Introduced in 2009, Grindr pioneered the use of then-new iPhone location features to show nearby users ready to chat or go further. On May 9, Grindr announced it planned to go public through a SPAC deal that would value the company at $2.1B, almost 10 times what it sold for four years ago. If shareholders approve the merger, Grindr will finally be a public company. Grindr primarily makes money off ads, with some revenue from user subscriptions for premium features. ~94% of Grindr's 11M monthly active users worldwide use it for free, according to an investor presentation. The company is promising investors that there's $14 trillion to be made serving the LGBTQ+ community. Grindr had revenue of $104.5M in 2020, growing ~40% to $145.8M in 2021. Grindr lost $13.1M in 2020 and made $5.1M last year. Grindr has been criticized for weak privacy protections. It also has comparatively sparse resources devoted to moderating its 11M monthly active users: According to the company, it has 75 moderators contracted through the company PartnerHero. Grindr recently partnered with Spectrum Labs, an AI company, to help scale its content moderation.
Category: Grindr
Background Checks on Dating Apps
EYEWITNESS NEWS – One study found 81% of online daters misrepresented some aspect about themselves, be it height, weight, or age. The Federal Trade Commission says phishing and dating scams on apps cost victims $304M in 2020, double the amount of the previous year. Top10.com researched the background check and user verification processes for the most popular dating apps and websites.
Match Group
The company announced in March 2021 a partnership with nonprofit background check technology Garbo. The app provides historical information about domestic violence and abuse.
Badoo
The app makes sure the person is legitimate by having users take an image in a unique pose to verify. Badoo also allows users to further verify using a phone number or social network account and marks verification on their profile.
Bumble
Bumble uses a combination of AI and human-led monitoring systems to review accounts and messages for violations of their terms of service. These include imagery or language that discriminates against someone's race, ethnicity, disability, gender expression, and a range of other criteria.
AdultFriendFinder
AdultFriendFinder doesn't do background checks. While users are to accept sole responsibility for their own interactions with other users, users have recourse to report account abuse, and moderators are also looking out for abnormal behavior on the site.
Ashley Madison
User verification and background checks are counterintuitive to the goal of Ashley Madison.
Happn
Similar to Badoo, Happn users have the opportunity to certify their profiles by taking a video posing with unique head gestures, as instructed by the app. While Happn claims noncertified profiles are not fake, they do not provide any additional background on whether a vetting process exists for noncertified profiles.
Zoosk
Zoosk provides online dating safety tips for people new to dating online. Although, in those tips, it's suggested that users do their own research on potential suitors because Zoosk asserts it does not "routinely screen our members, inquire into the background of our members, attempt to verify information provided by our members, or conduct criminal screenings of our members."
Eharmony
While the dating service does not conduct an official background check, it does provide users with an 80-question survey to narrow in on the specificity of the website's services.
Grindr
Grindr notes in its terms of service that it does not conduct criminal or other background screenings of its users and doesn't verify the information users provide.
by Vivian Muniz
See full article at PA Homepage
Grindr to Go Public in $2.1B SPAC Deal
REUTERS – Grindr will go public through a merger with a blank-check acquisition firm – a deal that values it at $2.1B and features Tiga Investments CEO Raymond Zage on both sides of the transaction. Grindr said its existing shareholders would own 78% of the company after the merger, which comes two years after China's Kunlun Tech divested it for $620M due to U.S. national security concerns. While Grindr did not disclose the identities of its existing shareholders, Reuters previously reported that Zage had a 41% stake in the consortium that acquired Grindr. Zage continues to be an investor in Grindr. Tiga Acquisition, the Singapore-based special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that will merge with Grindr, is controlled by Zage. Under the deal, Grindr will receive $284M in cash from Tiga and up to $100M in a forward purchase agreement.
Grindr User Data Has Been for Sale for Years
WALL STREET JOURNAL – Grindr's user locations were collected and sold via ad networks since at least 2017; Grindr says it has curtailed the data it shares. Grindr cut off the flow of location data to any ad networks, ending the possibility of such data collection two years ago, the company said. The data didn't contain personal information such as names or phone numbers. But the Grindr data were in some cases detailed enough to infer things like romantic encounters between specific users, as well as identify clues to people's identities such as their workplaces and home addresses. "Since early 2020, Grindr has shared less information with ad partners than any of the big tech platforms and most of our competitors," a spokesman for Grindr said in a statement.
by Byron Tau & Georgia Wells
See full article at Wall Street Journal
Watch the Trailer for Grindr’s 1st Original Comedy Series Bridesman
OUT – Gay dating app Grindr is launching its first original comedy series this April, and the official trailer just dropped. Bridesman will be six episodes long and follows a “gay and awful” man named Terry as he is “forced to fulfill bridesmaid duties for his best friend despite his disdain for the construct of marriage and an electric sexual connection with the groom.”
Which Dating Apps Got the Most Press Coverage Last Year?
OPW – Last year, we mentioned 281 internet dating industry brands in 1,066 posts. Although Match Group and its brands are clearly dominating this list, Bumble takes first place this time, even though only by one post. Here is the full list of companies with the most press coverage for last year.
- Bumble (131 posts)
- Tinder (130 posts)
- Match Group (96 posts)
- OkCupid (43 posts)
- Hinge (42 posts)
- Match.com (35 posts – shared)
- Grindr (35 posts – shared)
- The Meet Group (31 posts)
- Blued (23 posts)
- Spark Networks (22 posts)
Grindr Introduces Albums, a New Way to Share Private Content
GRINDR BLOG – Albums are the easiest way to share photos with other users on Grindr. In the last year there's been a 113% increase in the number of times users send multiple photos and a 72% increase in the number of expiring photos sent. Grindr learned that users want more authority over the photos they share on the app. They want to be able to share multiple photos with one click, and to revoke access just as easily.
China Bans Grindr Citing National Law on Security
OPINDIA – Grindr started disappearing from several app stores available in China after its cyberspace authority launched an internet clean-up campaign to ensure a "healthy, festive and auspicious online environment".
Dating Apps Join Forces for Valentine’s Vaccination Push
Grindr to Appeal Norwegian Fine for Privacy Violations
AXIOS – Grindr plans to file an appeal of a $7M fine from Norwegian regulators. Norway found that Grindr illegally disclosed user data to advertisers, but the company says it is being singled out for widely used practices.