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.
Category: Match Group
Match Group to Present at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference
PR NEWSWIRE – Gary Swidler, COO & CFO, will participate in a fireside chat at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference on Wednesday, September 14th at 11:30 am PST. A live webcast and replay of the fireside chat will be available at https://ir.mtch.com/news-and-events/events.
Match Group Ups Antitrust Pressure on Apple in India
REUTERS – Match Group has filed an antitrust case against Apple with the competition regulator in India, accusing it of "monopolistic conduct" that forces developers to pay high commissions for in-app purchases. A similar dispute in the Netherlands resulted in a 50M euro fine for Apple and an agreement to allow different payment methods in Dutch dating apps. Apple says in India, 87% of apps on its App Store are those which don't pay any commissions at all.
Garbo Offers Free Background Checks on Match Group Apps
YAHOO FINANCE – Online daters using one of Match Group's apps can now use Garbo's online background check service to screen potential dates. Garbo searches typically cost $3.25 each, but the web-based app is providing complimentary background checks to Match Group's free and premium subscribers. Garbo focuses on flagging subjects for dating violence convictions, registries on sexual offense databases, and fraud offenses.
Dating Apps Prosper in an Evolving Market
LA BUSINESS JOURNAL – Dating apps made $5.6B in revenue last year, with ~$3B being made by Match Group. Since the start of the pandemic, more people have turned to dating apps. In a publication titled "The Future of Dating is Fluid," Tinder pointed out that 2020 was an outstanding year. 60% of members came to Tinder because they felt lonely. 50% of Tinder's Gen Z users participated in a video chat, and 30% were playing online video games together. Those who tried virtual dating saw it as a low-pressure way to get a sense of someone and their personality. Hannah Shimko from the Online Dating Association said the pandemic made people more comfortable with being online. She added that new companies are trying to be innovative about bringing back in-person dating. One example is FROME, a dating app that encourages offline dates. When users sign on, they can choose "available today"or "available this week" to set up a date. When a user is interested in someone, they will send an invitation with a day, time and place. Once the other user confirms, they are locked to each other for the day and cannot connect with anyone else.
Can Safety Features Help Dating Stocks Attract Investors?
OPTO – The Tinder Swindler story highlighted the urgent need for greater transparency in order to protect users. In 2020, romance scams accounted for a total loss of ~$304M, up 50% from 2019. A month after the documentary's release, Match Group announced plans to launch background checks on Tinder in partnership with the National Domestic Violence Hotline and Garbo. The news was received well: the group's stock climbed 12.8% on the day of the announcement. While investors have fallen out of love with subscription-based tech stocks, with Match Group down 42% year-to-date, a rising trend in introducing safeguarding features to protect users has taken off. Bumble announced that it is working with trauma support website Bloom to provide free support for women who report physical or emotional abuse. Bumble makes clear that developing a secure environment is front of mind.
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Looking for Love in the Metaverse
Nevermet connects VR enthusiasts, who build profiles including in-depth personal bios and avatars. Once two people match they leave Neremet to connect in a virtual world of their choosing. Flirtual sends users to VRChat after they've connected on the Flirtual app. Planet Theta launches November, and will connect matches via virtual speed dating. 1-min chats lead to 3-min coffee dates in a Planet Theta-designed cafe. After virtual coffee users see their dates' photos and can connect in Planet Theta's metaverse world, virtually sipping drinks at a bar or feeding squirrels in the enchanted forest.
by David Westenhaver
See full article at Forbes
Mark Brooks: The mind boggles. What's your thoughts on VR / AR and AI enabled Internet dating? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this Swell.
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Match Hopes to Re-Spark Tinder With a New CMO
Tinder to Kill Virtual Currency, Management Changes
TECH CRUNCH – Match Group announced a series of changes to Tinder's management team alongside the announcement of disappointing Q2 earnings. Notably, Tinder CEO Renate Nyborg will be departing the company after less than a year in the top job. Match Group is also killing Tinder's plans to adopt new technology, like virtual currencies and metaverse-based dating. Alongside the departure of Nyborg, Tinder will have a reorganized management team that also includes:
- Faye Iosotaluno, formerly Match Group's chief strategy officer, as Tinder's COO
- Mark van Ryswyk, as Tinder's chief product officer.
- Melissa Hobley, formerly OkCupid's CMO, as Tinder's CMO.
- Tom Jacques, as Tinder's chief technology officer.
- Advisor Amarnath Thombre. The current CEO of Match Group Americas and 15-year Match Group veteran will advise the Tinder management team on product roadmap and growth.
Match Q2 Results
MATCH GROUP – Total Revenue grew 12% YOY to $795M. Operating loss was $10M driven by a $217M impairment of intangibles relating to the Hyperconnect acquisition. Operating income was $286M, up 9% YOY. Payers increased 10% to 16.4M, up from 15M in the prior year quarter. Tinder direct revenue grew 13% YOY. All other brands collectively grew direct revenue 12% YOY.