FOX17ONLINE – Mar 2 – A new survey by Plenty of Fish found that more than half (57%) of those surveyed think they'll find love in 2021. 58% say romantic gestures are more important to them than they were before the coronavirus pandemic began.
Category: POF
What Dating Apps Get the Most Press Coverage?
OPW – Mar 2 – We published 956 posts during last year on OPWS.news, featuring 257 dating industry brands. Here is who got the most press coverage on OPW.news.
- Tinder (137 posts)
- Match Group (96 posts)
- Bumble (93 posts)
- The Meet Group (58 posts)
- Grindr (46 posts)
- Hinge (40 posts)
- OkCupid (39 posts)
- PlentyOfFish (28 posts)
- Match.com (27 posts)
- Blued (18 posts)
The Complete Guide to the Online Dating Industry
QUARTZ – Feb 14 – Dating online has revolutionized how we fall in love. The industry has 270m monthly users globally and grew by 13% in 2020, but online dating (swiping) has become exhausting. Experts say the apps that define the next era of online dating will offer more fun, safety, and community.
Amarnath Thombre, head of Match North America said Match's strategy is to "have each app run its own experiment," and, as the experiments play out, the company can use the successful features in its other properties. Match is also expanding into Asia with the lucrative Pairs in Japan, and Hawaya a Muslim-focused service.
Bumble had 42m MAU in Q3 2020. Facebook Dating seems to have fizzled, although some industry experts say it still has big potential [(Mark Brooks)]
"Pretty much everything that we charge for on Hinge, we couldn't really give away for free because then it wouldn't work anymore," said Hinge's CEO/founder Justin McLeod. "Think about Roses, for example. Roses are really, really special. If we gave everyone unlimited Roses, then it would completely defeat the purpose of Roses." Hinge downloads grew 63% globally between 2019 and 2020.
Mark Brooks, a leading industry consultant, says that for dating apps to be able to keep monetizing, moving into a more community-oriented gear is the way to go. "We want people to stick around, have fun. Yes, hook up, meet up, and maybe stick around even beyond that point," he said. "I think we'll see a general shift away from dating into more community-esque apps."
Since the beginning of the pandemic, The Meet Group saw livestreamed minutes increase by 40%. The Meet Group provides livestreaming for Match Group's Plenty of Fish, and the feature is proving to be popular. In Feb Match acquired Hyperconnect, a Korean "social discovery" company that owns a livestreaming app, and a video and audio chatting app that translates conversations in real time, for $1.7B.
Cook points out that the growth of the dating industry has generally been slowing. "And so what do dating companies do when you're saturating the market? …they find other ways to engage the user. …they can provide some entertainment value."
Every female dater interviewed for this article mentioned how they often feel unsafe on the apps, or how they are put off by unwanted sexual attention. In 2019, Bumble launched a feature that detects and blurs inappropriate photos. Tinder directs users who report violations to support organizations. Content moderation is slowly getting better.
Dating could jump to new media. For a true dating revolution to happen, the industry needs another media shift, like the one from desktop to mobile, said Brooks. He predicts that the jump will be to Augmented Reality, and that through wearable technology like AR lenses, people will get more "intel-on-the-go" about potential matches. "When passing by someone who has double matched, or is viable and an exceptional date candidate, they will be indicated to them." (Hakuna Live, one of the apps Match acquired in its Hyperconnect deal, features augmented reality avatars).
What's more, Brooks thinks we need more "coaxing along" when we're dating. AR, as well as "informed, tailored advice" from the dating service will deliver helpful nudges in real time, such as: "it's been 20 days since your last date night, might be time for a date at ,'" he said. "I think the benefits of timely advice will outweigh the creepiness of having a computer act as an informed advisor."
by Hanna Kozlowska
See full article at Quartz
Mark Brooks: Please see Courtland Brooks for more information on our niche agency/consultancy. We help Internet dating and online social communities to grow, and get their strategy, business development and marketing (more) right. 😉
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Mozilla Privacy Report Singles out Grindr for Serious Security Lapses
TECH REPUBLIC – Feb 10 – 21 of the 24 dating apps examined were tagged with the "*Privacy Not Included" warning label, noting that apps like Grindr are a "privacy and security nightmare." Mozilla researchers dug deep into the privacy policies and security practices of dating sites, pressing companies with questions like "Can this app or product snoop on me? What data is being collected and who is it shared with? What is the company's track record for protecting users' data? And, What could happen if something goes wrong?" Grindr continues to share other user data, like location, with third parties. Plenty of Fish is also mandating information like users' vehicle ownership and their parents' marital status," the study noted. Lex, built for the lesbian, queer, trans, and non-binary community, collects minimal data, and doesn't share it for marketing purposes. Further, their privacy policy is crystal clear. eHarmony is another app that respects users' privacy and security.
by Jonathan Greig
See full article at Tech Republic
See the top news on Grindr See the top news on POF
See the top news on eHarmony See the top news on Lex
POF 2021 Valentine’s Day Forecast
PR NEWSWIRE – Feb 4 – New survey from Plenty of Fish reveals 57% of singles are serious about finding love this year, 40% believe Valentine's Day is the perfect time to spark a new relationship. With pandemic protocols still in place, singles are planning for more low-key activities. ~50% of millennials plan on celebrating at home with their "Quaran-team" (roommates, family and friends). For other singles, the top Valentine's Day activities include having a virtual date (one third) or meeting up in safer settings like the outdoors (~50%).
How Match Group Grew to Dominate the Online Dating Market
BUSINESS INSIDER – Feb 2 – Match Group, which started as one lonely Stanford Business School graduate's attempt to build a less embarrassing way to find love online in the '90s, has turned into a titan that owns nearly every US dating site. Bumble, however, is conspicuously absent from Match's portfolio. Bumble's CEO, ex-Tinder executive Whitney Wolfe Herd, has a toxic history with the online dating group.
History of Match
- Match Group was founded in Feb 2009 after IAC decided to bundle all dating sites it owned.
- AC's initial purchase of Match.com dates back to the 1990s. Gary Kremen founded Match.com in 1995; he left in 1996 with just ~$50K.
- Ticketmaster bought Match.com in 1999 for $50M. Cendant Corporation bought the company a year earlier for $6M.
- During the 2000s, IAC chairman Barry Diller turned Match.com into one of the most successful online dating companies in the US.
- Jim Safka, a former ETrade and AT&T executive, took over as Match.com CEO in 2004.
- Revenue increased 68% between 2003 and 2006, going from $185M to $311M
- IAC acquired People Media for $80M in July 2009, with a combined 255K subscribers.
- 2011, Match Group acquired OkCupid for $50M.
- In January 2012, Hatch Labs, a startup "sandbox" launched by IAC to incubate mobile apps, hired Sean Rad as general manager. Rad worked with developer Joe Muñoz to create the prototype for Tinder. Jonathan Badeen and Chris Gulczynski were hired to help with front-end and design. Whitney Wolfe Herd was hired in May and Justin Mateen was brought in as a contractor. The app was originally called Match Box.
- August 2012, Match Box was renamed to "Tinder" and launched on Apple's App Store.
- By April 2013, Tinder officially incorporated, with Rad, Badeen, and Mateen considered the company's cofounders. Rad served as CEO.
- IAC later purchased another chunk of Tinder for ~$50M.
- In 2014, Wolfe Herd sued Tinder and IAC for sexual harassment and discrimination.
- In 2015, acquired POF for $575M, Match Group went public.
- By 2017, Tinder had merged under the Match Group umbrella.
- In 2018, Rad and nine other Tinder employees sued IAC, claiming IAC purposely undervalued the startup. The lawsuit sought $2B in damages.
- 2018, acquisition of Hinge.
- December 2019, IAC announced it was spinning off its stake in Match Group.
- Jan 2020, Match Group CEO of 14 years, Mandy Ginsberg, stepped down. Former Tinder COO Shar Dubey took over.
by Avery Hartmans & Allana Akhtar
See full article at Business Insider
FriendFinder Networks Achieves Court Judgment Against Match Group
BUSINESSWIRE – Jan 12 – In 2019, FFN discovered it had overpaid PlentyofFish by $116K for members sent to AdultFriendFinder over the course of a business relationship that goes back to 2011. Unfortunately, PlentyOfFish refused to correct this overpayment, and it was necessary to file litigation. FFN has paid over $13M since 2011 for the members PlentyOfFish sent to its adult websites.
See full article at Businesswire
See all posts on FriendFinder Networks
See the top news on Match Group
Finding Love Without Alcohol
NEW YORK TIMES – Dec 29 – According to a 2014 survey by Plenty of Fish, 48% of singles reported consuming two to three drinks on a first date and 36% percent have had a drink before a first date. Outside traditional dating apps, are online platforms like 12StepMatch, Love in Recovery and Single and Sober where it's understood that no one drinks. Loosid app, a sober social network that started in 2018, offers boozeless guides, chat groups and a sober dating platform.
by Hilary Sheinbaum
See full article at New York Times
See the top news on POF
See the top news on Loosid
See the top news on Single and Sober
Match Group and RAINN Enter Into Partnership on Dating Safety
PR NEWSWIRE – Dec 7 – Match Group partners with RAINN, the nation's largest anti-sexual violence organization, to conduct a comprehensive review of sexual misconduct reporting, moderation, and response across Match Group's dating platforms and to work together to improve current safety systems and tools. The initial phase of the review will focus on Tinder, Hinge, and Plenty of Fish. RAINN is a founding member of the Match Group Advisory Council, a group that includes leading experts and advocates involved in the study and prevention of sexual assault, sex trafficking, abuse, harassment, and similar issues. The council is the first of its kind in the industry, and regularly makes recommendations on how to improve safety on Match Group platforms.
Could Hinge Be Match Group’s Next Tinder?
THE MOTLEY FOOL – Nov 10 – Tinder dominates Match's revenue. It has grown from around zero revenue in 2014 to ~$1.4B this year. Match.com and other legacy websites like PlentyofFish make up around a third of sales. The smallest part of Match's current portfolio is the "emerging opportunities." It includes brands like Ablo, Pairs, and Hawaya, but is led by Hinge. Hinge is "designed to be deleted," meaning it targets people in the slightly older millennial cohort looking for long-term relationships. Match doesn't disclose Hinge's nominal revenue numbers. However, the app downloads year-to-date were up 82%. In fact, the company disclosed in its Q2 report that Hinge users have grown more than tenfold since 2017. With ~10M downloads globally, Hinge may be on the verge of what Tinder achieved a few years ago: hitting escape velocity in its target market.
by Brett Schafer
See full article at The Motley Fool