TECH CRUNCH – Oct 21 – From today, European Facebook users can opt into Facebook Dating by creating a profile at facebook.com/dating. Among the dating product's main features are the ability to share Stories on users' profile; a Secret Crush feature that let people select up to nine of their Facebook friends or Instagram followers who they'd like to date (without them knowing unless they also add them – triggering a match notification); the ability to see people with similar interests; and a video chat feature called Virtual Dates. Since the launch of Facebook's dating product in 20 countries around the world – including the U.S. and a number of markets in Asia and LatAm – the company says ~1.5B matches have been "created".
Category: Outlets – Tech Crunch
Bumble Hires Two New C-level Executives
TECH CRUNCH – Oct 13 – Bumble is expanding its C-suite with two new hires: Anu Subramanian as Bumble's CFO, who hails from Univision, and Selby Drummond as chief brand officer, who is joining from Snap. Bumble can now claim it has equal male-to-female representation across its C-suite. According to reports, Bumble hit 100M users this summer and is preparing to IPO in 2021, possibly at a $6B-plus valuation.
Grindr’s Security Flaw Let Anyone Easily Hijack User Accounts
Spectrum Labs Raises $10M for Its AI-based Platform to Combat Online Toxicity
TECH CRUNCH – Sep 24 – Spectrum Labs – which has built algorithms and a set of APIs that can be used to detect toxic behavior, has raised $10M in a Series A round of funding. The company plans to use the capital to expand its platform. The company has raised ~$14M to date. Spectrum Labs works with a wide range of companies, including The Meet Group. Spectrum Labs' AI-based platform is currently set up to scan for ~40 kinds of toxic behavior profiles such as harassment, hate speech, scams, grooming, illegal solicitation, and doxxing.
by Ingrid Lunden
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This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.com
Bumble Will Exist as Long as Women Do, CEO Says
TECH CRUNCH – Sep 15 – Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd wants to build a truly timeless company. She said onstage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2020: "We truly believe that as long as there are women on planet Earth – which there would be no planet Earth without them – we believe we will be in business."
Tinder’s “Swipe Night” to Launch Globally This Month
TECH CRUNCH – Sep 3 – "Swipe Night" interactive video series will be available in Asia and other international markets starting on September 12, giving users another way to connect as they continue to stay at home because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Swipe Night first launched in October in the U.S. It presents viewers with a "choose-your-own-adventure" narrative, but each of its episodes is only seven-minutes-long and users' choices are added to their profile, giving them another way to figure out if someone is a good match.
Match Confirms Plans for Tinder Platinum
TECH CRUNCH – Aug 5 – Tinder is testing a new top-level subscription plan, Tinder Platinum, which it expects to roll out in Q4. Match described the subscription as providing additional value beyond Tinder's current paid plan, Tinder Gold, but noted the feature was still in the very early stages of testing and was essentially still considered a minimum viable product. According to a U.K.-based Tinder user, the offer for Platinum popped up when they were using Tinder on the web. But they weren't able to make a purchase. The image showed price points as £5.97 per month if on an annual plan, £8.35 per month if on a six-month plan or £14.32 per month if paying monthly.
After Numerous Rejections, Dating App Struck Hits the App Store
TECH CRUNCH – July 21 – Founded by former Apple engineers, a new app called Struck wants to be the astrology-based Tinder. But it took close to 10 attempts over several months for the startup to get its app approved by Apple. App reviewers flagged the app as "spam" either due to its use of astrology or simply because it was designed for online dating. Apple guideline states that developers should "avoid piling on to a category that is already saturated," and reminds developers that the App Store has "enough fart, burp, flashlight, fortune telling, dating, and Kama Sutra apps, etc. already." Apple will reject anything that "doesn't offer a high-quality experience."
Tinder Testing Video Chat
Dating App S’More Adds Blurred Video Calling and Launches in LA
TECH CRUNCH – July 3 – S'More, whose name is short for "something more", launched last fall and has supposedly attracted ~50K users. The dating app has recently launched a video calling feature. The video is blurred for the first two minutes, which means users have got to start an interesting conversation before they can see who they're talking to. S'More has also expanded geographically, launching last week in Los Angeles.