REUTERS – Jan 9 – Alibaba Group has released subtle ad that features a gay couple returning home for the Lunar New Year. The spot began to circulate widely on Chinese social media as gay groups praised it for its good-natured humor and subtlety. Depictions of gay and lesbian individuals in entertainment and media are rare, due to government dissuasion or outright censorship. However, China has vibrant gay communities and activists in its major cities, and same sex couples are increasingly tolerated across society.
Category: Outlets – Reuters
Parent Company of eharmony Eyes Acquisition of The Meet Group
REUTERS – Dec 16 – German broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE's e-commerce arm NuCom Group is exploring the acquisition of U.S. livestreaming app developer The Meet Group. NuCom, whose holdings include online dating website eharmony, has made a preliminary expression of interest to buy The Meet Group, the sources said, cautioning that there is no certainty that there will be negotiations that lead to a deal.
IAC Must Face Tinder Co-founder’s $2 Billion Lawsuit
REUTERS – Oct 30 – A New York state appeals court has rejected IAC's bid to dismiss a $2B lawsuit by a group of Tinder founders, executives and early employees who said it undervalued the dating app to avoid paying them billions of dollars. The decision affirmed a June 13 ruling by New York State Supreme Court Justice Saliann Scarpulla in Manhattan. IAC and Match separately sued Rad in January, accusing him of having secretly copied files and other proprietary information. They also filed a $400M countersuit in September accusing him of having recorded conversations with his superiors without their consent. Rad has sought to dismiss the January lawsuit, and in an Oct. 17 court filing Rad's lawyer called the countersuit "legally without merit" and an effective attempt to bankrupt Rad.
Tinder to Launch Its First Scripted Video Series
REUTERS – Sep 17 – Tinder has wrapped filming on its first television series. Making new shows is part of a larger strategy that will be revealed in the near future. The multi-episode series centers on an "apocalyptic" storyline and includes a relationship sub plot. It was filmed in Mexico City in late August. Offering original content is an increasingly popular strategy for the technology and retail industries. The strategy seeks to engage users on a deeper level even when they are not using the service.
by David Alire Garcia & Angela Moon
See full article at Reuters
China’s Kunlun to Relaunch Grindr IPO
REUTERS – July 28 – Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun is relaunching Grindr's IPO process after it said a U.S. national security panel had dropped its opposition to the plan. Beijing Kunlun was preparing for an IPO (IPO) of Grindr in September, but the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS), which reviews deals for potential national security concerns, intervened. At the request of U.S. officials, Kunlun that month agreed to sell the dating app. Grindr will be listed on a stock exchange outside China. Beijing Kunlun acquired a majority stake in Grindr in 2016 for $93M and bought out the remainder of the company in 2018.
Grindr’s Data Misstep and Scramble to Make up
REUTERS – May 22 – Early last year, Grindr's Chinese owner Beijing Kunlun Tech gave some Beijing-based engineers access to personal information of millions of Americans such as private messages and HIV status, prompting U.S. officials to ask it to sell the dating app. After taking full control of Grindr in January 2018, Beijing Kunlun Tech stepped up management changes and consolidated operations to cut costs and expand operations in Asia. In the process, some of the company's engineers in Beijing got access to the Grindr database for several months. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a government panel that scrutinizes foreign acquisitions of U.S. companies, worried that Grindr's database may include compromising information about personnel who work in military or intelligence. China's foreign ministry said it was aware of the situation with Grindr and urged the US to allow fair competition and not politicize economic issues. Grindr hired a cyber forensic firm and a third-party auditor at CFIUS’s behest to report on its compliance and to make sure the data was secure. Kunlun kept trying to salvage the Grindr deal until as recently as last week, when it said it would sell it by June next year.
Grindr Defeats Appeal Over Harassment on Gay Dating App
REUTERS – Mar 27 – A U.S. federal appeals court refused to hold Grindr liable to a New York man who said his former boyfriend used the gay dating app to post fake profiles, in a harassment campaign that caused 1,000 men to approach the victim for sex. The man sued Grindr in Jan. 2017, and a federal judge dismissed his case a year later, prompting the appeal. His lawyer Tor Ekeland said he was "disappointed but not surprised" by Wednesday's decision because courts are "extremely deferential to big tech" when interpreting the CDA (Communications Decency Act). "Apps are being used to stalk, rape and murder. Under the court's reading of the CDA, big tech companies don't have responsibility to do anything about it, even if they know it is happening. Congress needs to amend this statute," he said.
U.S. Pushes Chinese Owner of Grindr to Divest the Dating App
REUTERS – Mar 26 – Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun Tech Co Ltd is seeking to sell Grindr, the gay dating app it has owned since 2016, after a U.S. government national security panel raised concerns about its ownership. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) has informed Kunlun that its ownership of Grindr constitutes a national security risk. Kunlun had said last August it was preparing for an IPO of Grindr. As a result of CFIUS' intervention, Kunlun has now shifted its focus to an auction process to sell Grindr outright. Grindr has hired investment bank Cowen Inc to handle the sale process, and is soliciting acquisition interest from U.S. investment firms, as well as Grindr's competitors. Kunlun acquired a majority stake in Grindr in 2016 for $93M. It bought out the remainder of the company in 2018.
by Carl O'Donnell, Liana B. Baker & Echo Wang
See full article at Reuters
Serena Williams to Take Bumble’s Woman-first Message to Super Bowl
REUTERS – Jan 3 – Tennis champion Serena Williams will star in a year-long marketing campaign for Bumble that will kick off with a message of women's empowerment during the Feb. 3 Super Bowl. In the campaign called "The Ball is in Her Court," Williams will urge women to make the first move in all aspects of their lives. The campaign will appear across multiple platforms, Bumble said, and its debut will coincide with the Super Bowl. Bumble declined to say if the campaign will include a TV commercial during the game.
by Lisa Richwine
See full article at One America News Network
Germany’s ProSiebenSat.1 Media (Parship) Acquires eHarmony
REUTERS – Oct 29 – Germany's ProSiebenSat.1 Media has bought eHarmony, in the first significant deal since it carved out a new e-commerce joint venture with General Atlantic. eHarmony expects 2.8 million new users this year, and complements ProSieben's own Parship dating franchise which is the market leader in Germany. Terms were not disclosed. Parship and sister brand Elite Partner, count 2 million registrations a year. eHarmony has brand awareness of nearly 90% and a very big user base that can be served better from a common platform. ProSieben is pushing to diversify away from its core commercial TV franchise, where ad revenues are flat and the sector is being disrupted by streaming platforms like Netflix. The Munich-based broadcaster bought eharmony via its newly created Nucom division, in which investor General Atlantic took a 24.9% stake in February. Nucom owns 94% of Parship. eharmony raised $113 million in two funding rounds. Most recently in 2004, Tuputele Ventures, TCV, Sequoia Capital and Fayez Sarofim & Co. eHarmony CEO Grant Langston will continue to run the business while representatives of Parship will join its board.
by Douglas Busvine & Joern Poltz
See full article at Reuters
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