Category: OkCupid

Dating Without Race

Posted on August 8, 2014

Rbrs_0297.jpg.CROP.rtstory-largeTHE ROOT – Aug 8 – Matchmaker and dating coach Paul Carrick Brunson predicts that by 2017, blacks’ per capita usage of mobile dating apps will be higher than that of any other ethnic group. According to a 2010 Pew survey, millennials are very accepting of interracial marriage, with 93% of 18- to 29-year-olds agreeing with the statement, “It is all right for blacks and whites to date each other.” But unless they’re using Meld, a brand-new app meant “exclusively for the African-American professional”, the numbers for black users of online dating tools are relatively low compared with those of other groups. OkCupid’s study “How Race Affects the Messages You Get” found that black users received fewer responses to their overtures overall.

by Erin C.J. Robertson
The full article was originally published at The Root, but is no longer available.

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OKCupid Admits To Purposely Giving Users Bad Matches In Site ‘Experiment’

Posted on July 30, 2014

Okcupid quickmatch-2BUSINESS INSIDER – July 29 – Christian Rudder, one of the founders of OKCupid, wrote an enticing blog post called "We Experiment On Human Beings!" to lay out three different experiments the dating site ran on its users without asking for permission. In the most controversial experiment, OKCupid lied to users. The site took pairs of users with low match ratings of ~30% (the ideal match is 100%) and told them they were a 90% match. They also did the opposite, giving highly-compatible pairs of users low match ratings. OKCupid found, somewhat unsurprisingly, that more people sent messages to matches they perceived to be compatible with. But users also sent more messages to people they were actually compatible with, regardless of the match score shown to them, proving the efficacy of its matching algorithm, but also the role of suggestion in matchmaking.

by Rebecca Borison
See full article at Business Insider

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Single Mom Used OKCupid To Make Friends

Posted on July 21, 2014

Okcupid logo aktualniTHE GLOBE AND MAIL – July 17 – Solmes, a single mother used OkCupid to meet other single mothers. She scoured through profiles, looking for women who had the highest compatibility index with her, and then messaged them. Looking for new girlfriends later in life is a lot like dating. Websites such as GirlFriendCircles.com, a “dating site for women finding friends,” tap into our tendency to hit it off with people who are substantially like us. A Yale study published this week found that we make friends with people who are genetically similar to us. Shasta Nelson, started GirlFriendCircles.com in 2009. The site now counts 40K member.

by Zosia Bielski
See full article at The Globe and Mail

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Match Group Interview With CEO Sam Yagan

Posted on May 21, 2014

OPW INTERVIEW – May 21 –

In the latest CEO Interview, Mark Brooks and Match Group CEO, Sam Yagan, discuss:

  • Acquisitions
  • Opportunities in Matchmaking
  • The Couples Market
  • Mobile Trends
  • Android vs. iOS
  • Wearable Computing

Please click here for a complete transcript of the interview.

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Queers Call For OKCupid Blackout

Posted on May 8, 2014

Okcupid partial logoOPW – May 7 – Queers recently called for a blackout to get OKCupid to update its limited gender and sexuality options to include trans, queer, and poly people. On May 2, activist Ryley Pogensky asked queers to replace their photos with a black box, and then to either log out or delete their profiles for 24 hours. OkCupid users only have the choice to identify as male or female, and straight, gay, or bi. The limited options for trans and gender-nonconforming people forces them to mislabel themselves. One year ago, OkCupid said: "We absolutely want to add more gender and orientation options in the future, it's something we're working towards." So far, nothing has changed, which is why Pogensky called for the blackout.

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Online Dating Sites As Political Activists

Posted on April 23, 2014

Online dating Apr 14WASHINGTON POST – Apr 18 – When Gary Kremen, founder of Match.com, did his first TV interview, he said his site would “bring more love to the planet than anything since Jesus Christ.” Neil Clark Warren started eHarmony with a vision to “literally change the world.” Three weeks ago, OkCupid helped galvanize support for the ouster of Brendan Eich, the CEO of Mozilla. Dating site may go to bat for certain interest groups, but only when doing so is easy, cost-free and consistent with building its brand. eHarmony has been alone in its willingness to risk resources and sacrifice customers over politics. From 2006 to 2008, the site spent millions to fight gay daters who demanded that eHarmony cater to them. “As online dating plays an important role in how we fall in love, we have a growing responsibility to advocate for our customers,” says Brian Schechter, co-founder of HowAboutWe. “This of course involves advocating for equal rights and respect for all sexual orientations.”

by Dan Slater
See full article at Washington Post

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All Men Love Asian Women, All Women Love White Men

Posted on April 12, 2014

BUZZFEED – Apr 9 - Are You Interested and OkCupid analyzed millions of interactions to see the extent to which race played a role in determining response rates.

by Eugene Lee Yang
See full article at BuzzFeed

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The Hypocrisy Of Sam Yagan & OkCupid

Posted on April 8, 2014

Okcupid sam yagan apr 14UNCRUNCHED – Apr 6 - OkCupid played a major role in the successful effort to bring down Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich. For OkCupid, it was a PR stunt and OkCupid co-founder Sam Yagan was particularly hypocritical in this. Sam Yagan made a $500 donation to U.S. Congressman Chris Cannon in 2004. Cannon has a special kind of hate for gays.

See full article at Uncrunched

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OkCupid ‘Satisfied’ With News Of Mozilla CEO’s Resignation

Posted on April 4, 2014

Okcupid firefox picMASHABLE – Apr 3 – Count OkCupid among those celebrating the resignation of Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich on Thursday. OKCupid protested Mozilla on Monday by discouraging users to visit its site via Firefox because Brendan Eich is an opponent of equal rights for gay couples.

by Kurt Wagner
See full article at Mashable

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OkCupid Urges Boycott Of Mozilla

Posted on April 2, 2014

Okcupid mozilla logosREUTERS – Mar 31 - OkCupid.com called for a boycott of Mozilla Firefox to protest the world's No. 2 Web browser naming a gay marriage opponent as CEO. OkCupid visitors who accessed the site through Firefox on Monday were tol to use other browsers. "Mozilla's new CEO, Brendan Eich, is an opponent of equal rights for gay couples," the message said. "We would therefore prefer that our users not use Mozilla software to access OkCupid."

by Gerry Shih
See full article at Reuters

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