THE TELEGRAPH – Sep 7 – Dating apps can be harmful for mental health because they contribute to "smartphone addiction," according to Whitney Wolfe, the founder of Bumble. Ms Wolfe said Bumble will now add a new "Snooze" function, which freezes the app for a certain time.
Category: Outlets – Telegraph
Matchmaking Agency Ordered To Pay Client £13k After It Failed To Find Her A Match
TELEGRAPH.CO.UK – Aug 16 – Seventy Thirty Ltd, a premium dating agency, has been ordered to refund a client ~£13K after it failed to find the woman the "man of my dreams". Tereza Burki, 47, paid Seventy Thirty Ltd £12,600 after she was assured they only dealt in "creme de la creme" matches, the High Court heard. But Judge Richard Parkes QC today ordered the agency to repay her fee, ruling that she had been "deceived" by Seventy Thirty's then managing director. It was found that whilst the agency boasted of ~7k members, only ~100 of them were men actively looking for love.
by Francesca Marshall
See full article at Telegraph.co.uk
Why Dating Giants Are Betting On AI
TELEGRAPH.CO.UK – "I don't think dating services should be able to tell you that you have a 95% chance of falling in love with someone," says Xavier de Baillenx, tech chief at Match. "The human brain is very complex. We are just helping users find their 'plus-one' in a less painful way." Dating expert Kate Taylor is similarly apprehensive. "I think the most important thing that technology can do is get you on a real-life date in front of a person," she says. Yet Match is investing heavily in the technology to stand out from the crowd. Match.com has created a virtual assistant that converses with users through a smart speaker. "Lara" can offer dating tips and locations to meet dates. She can even suggest when it is appropriate to have sex. Last week, Happn introduced a new feature: an AI-fuelled interactive map that shows people that visited the same venue in the past seven days. It has big plans to use the increasing amount of data people generate. Facebook can also offer what each dating app on the market can combined. It has one of the most advanced facial recognition tools, not to mention a huge pool of behavioural data.
by Margi Murphy
See full article at Telegraph.co.uk
Ashley Madison Chief: No Publicity Is Bad Publicity
by Margi Murphy
See full article at Telegraph.co.uk
Once App Asks Women To Rate Men On Whether They Appear ‘Worse’ In Real Life
No More Tiger Selfies, Tinder Said
Tinder And Grindr Should Advertise Condoms To Prevent STIs
by Laura Donnelly
See full article at Telegraph.co.uk
How Happn Founder Came Up With Great Ideas
Q: What's your business background?
A: I worked as an international textiles trader for almost half my professional life. But when the Internet arrived, I became completely obsessed. I was also one of the three co-founders of Dailymotion, which we sold in 2011. I eventually started Happn in 2013. I spend three hours a day reading and monitoring what's happening in the world. People ask me from where I get my great ideas. It's simply from working and reading.
Q: How did you develop Happn?
A: We started by asking consumers what they didn't like about dating apps. They told us that they were too virtual, deceptive and time-consuming. We wanted to bring the real world into the dating space. So when you open the app, your timeline shows people who are currently around you. We have 25M users worldwide. We want to make it profitable by the end of 2017 and we're pursuing a freemium model.
by Anna Isaac
See full article at Telegraph.co.uk
Mark Brooks: Everyone is pursuing a freemium model. But that runway will run out soon. Media costs are rising. Dating apps will probably lose their luster. More paid acquisition will be necessary.
Dating App For Remain Voters Wants To Launch
TELEGRAPH.CO.UK – June 29 – "Remainder" is billing itself as the "dating and social app for the 48% " – the proportion of people who voted to remain in EU. The app isn't downloadable at this stage. It is asking for donations on Crowdfunder, hoping to raise £5K to launch the app, and says it has had thousands of signups.
David Cameron Joins With Tinder To Convince Young People To Vote
TELEGRAPH.CO.UK – May 16 – David Cameron has joined forces with Tinder to encourage young people to vote. As the Prime Minister steps up his campaign in the lead up to the EU Referendum, he has been searching for ways to reach young people. Young people are less likely to vote than the general population, but more likely to be pro-EU.
by Helena Horton
See full article at Telegraph.co.uk