Category: Reporters – Sarah Perez
Hater Dating App Will Expand Beyond Dating
TECH CRUNCH – Feb 28 – Hater founder and CEO Brendan Alper says the idea for the app came up a year and a half ago, but he hadn't envisioned it as being a real product at the time. Instead, Alper, a former Goldman Sachs employee, had left the banking biz to pursue his passion in writing comedy. Hater was originally going to be a part of an online comedy sketch. But the more he talked about it, the more it seemed like the app might actually have real appeal. The app connects people based on their dislikes. Hater now has 310k users and 30k+ daily active users. Alper is planning the expansion to social, more Facebook ad tests and a partnership with Cosmo, which will publish stats pulled from the app. Brands are also talking to Hater about future integrations, which could see them being able to place their own items into the app's list, then analyze the results of who likes and hates those topics.
Users Spent More On Apps In 2016
Tinder Acquires Wheel, An App For Snapchat-like Videos
TECH CRUNCH – Feb 16 – Tinder is acquiring an L.A.-based startup called Wheel, which had developed a social network for sharing Snapchat-like videos. Wheel was originally founded in 2015, when it was then called Ferris. The company had raised $2M in 2015. However, Wheel did not became a breakout success. According to data from App Annie, the app was ranked #574 in the Photo & Video category on the App Store. Following the acquisition, Wheel's founding team will join Tinder, including CEO Paul Boukadakis, CTO Chris Shaheen, Joey Boukadakis and Brian Daugherty. Boukadakis will be VP of Special Initiatives at Tinder, and Shaheen will be a senior engineer. Tinder did not share what specific plans it had for video.
OkCupid Revamps To Be Less Like Tinder
Tinder’s Newest App, Tinder Stacks, Lets You Swipe On Anything
Tinder’s new Group Dating Feature Shows All Friends Using The App
TECH CRUNCH – Apr 28 – Tinder Social lets friends swipe and match with other groups they want to meet. Unfortunately, Tinder users who are being opted into this feature by default are surprised to find that it automatically displays which of their Facebook friends are also using Tinder. Tinder Social presents a list of all users' Facebook friends and lets them view their dating profiles from a very accessible interface. But Tinder is still experimenting with Tinder Social, and is only testing it with a small group of users in Australia.
Ashley Madison Refutes Claims That Its Site Was Populated With Fake Female Accounts
TECH CRUNCH – Aug 31 – That’s hard to believe, given that the leaked emails also revealed the company paid people to create fake profiles. In addition, Avid Life Media states that Ashley Madison's user base is growing, following the hack. Hundreds of thousands of new users signed up in the past week, including 87K women, the company says.
by Sarah Perez
See full article at Tech Crunch
Avid Life Media CEO Noel Biderman Is Leaving The Company
TECH CRUNCH – Aug 28 – Avid Life Media CEO Noel Biderman is stepping down. The company describes Biderman’s departure as a “mutual agreement". The company will be led by senior management until a new CEO can be found.
by Sarah Perez
See full article at Tech Crunch
Tinder Sees Huge Jump In App Revenue Rankings
TECH CRUNCH – May 2 – Tinder's move into the subscription business seems to be paying off. New data from app store analytics firm App Annie showcases Tinder's climb in the charts following the release of Tinder Plus. The app moved up six spots in Google Play’s revenue rankings, while on iOS it jumped from No. 969 in Overall revenue rankings to No. 26. Tinder reached that No .26 position on March 2 – when the Tinder Plus subscription service debuted.