Online Personals Watch: News on the Online Dating Industry and Business

Ruben Buell - Monetizing Dating Apps Via Gifting

LTR - Ruben is the CTO and COO at Reflex Media. He is responsible for managing the daily operations of Seeking.com, Dayo, WhatsYourPrice, FirstDate, and MissTravel, among other dating sites. In addition to this, he serves as the CEO of RealGifts, which provides a platform for users to access top-selling products from various brands and send personalized gifts through mobile apps and websites.

Real Gifts is a platform that allows people to send physical gifts across social and dating platforms. Ruben Buell, who has a lot of experience in the dating industry, spoke about Real Gifts and its potential benefits for dating platforms. He explained that gift-giving is an important aspect of building and strengthening relationships and can help people stand out on dating apps. The Real Gifts platform offers a way for people to send gifts that recipients will love, creating a positive feeling and a dopamine rush. The platform is customizable and generates revenue for channel partners.

The March LTR was kindly sponsored by technology providers Livebox by The Meet Group, Courtland Brooks and Matchmaker.com

SugarDaddyMeet Hits 7M User Milestone

DIGITAL JOURNAL - SugarDaddyMeet, a dating platform for well-off men and attractive women, has reached the milestone of 7M users after Valentine's Day 2023. Launched in 2007, the platform asserts itself as a popular choice for those seeking genuine connections and luxurious lifestyles. Over the past five years, the platform claims to have experienced an 87% increase in global registrations and aims to attract an additional 1M members by the end of 2023. SugarDaddyMeet says it implements strict dating rules to maintain authenticity, with only 45% of applicants successfully passing the review process.

See full article at Digital Journal

See the top news on SugarDaddyMeet

Chinese Social Platform Soul Mulls Hong Kong Listing Again

PANDAILY - Soulgate, the developer of the social media app Soul, has submitted another listing application to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company initially planned an IPO in the USA but abandoned this plan in June 2022. According to the prospectus, Soulgate achieved operating revenues of 498M yuan ($72M), 1.281B yuan ($185M) and 1.667B yuan ($241M), respectively from 2020-2022, while experiencing losses of 579M yuan ($84M), 1.3B yuan ($188M) and 508M yuan ($73M) during the same period. Soul is China's first social networking platform where all users interact through virtual identities, with ~30M monthly active users and ~9.6M daily active users.

See full article at Pandaily

See the top news on Soul

This post also appears on VerySocialNetwork

FITFCK: the Dating App for Gym-Goers Backed by OnlyFans Founder

GYMFLUENCERS - FITFCK is a new dating app designed specifically to help gym-goers find like-minded matches while also providing a community space for members to share their love of all things active. The founder, Jamie Wykes-Hobday, has received funding from OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely. The amount of funding is undisclosed, but it has reportedly amplified the business's value to over £3M. Stokely isn't the only one to have backed the business. Gaming YouTubers Sam Harry and Martin Wood, AKA Chaotic and SXVXN have also all invested in the project. The plan is for FITFCK to evolve over time to be more than a dating app, and the platform has already shown its potential as a community space for fitness lovers, with events and meet-ups attracting lots of interest.

by Frankie Michael Rudland
See full article at Gymfluencers

See the top news on FITFCK

Dating Maestro Plays in Dubai

OPW - A one-off concert by Dmitry Volkov and friends happened last night in Dubai at the Theater Of Digital Art. It was a multi-sensory masterpiece by the CEO/Founder of Social Discovery Group.

See the top news on Social Discovery Group

ProSiebenSat.1 to Cut Jobs, Seeks Buyer for Dating Business

REUTERS - ProSiebenSat.1, a German media group, is planning to reduce costs and cut jobs while focusing on its in-house streaming platform Joyn. The company's CEO, Bert Habets, also announced plans to divest its online dating service, ParshipMeet Group, once it finds a suitable buyer. Habets did not rule out an initial public offering but said it was unrealistic in the current market climate.

by Klaus Lauer
See full article at Reuters

See the top news on ParshipMeet Group

47% of Gen Z Daters Think Men Should Take the Lead in Relationships

CNBC - According to data from Bumble's State of the Nation 2023 survey, 40% of Americans believe that men should take the lead in a relationship, and 47% of Gen Z respondents subscribe to this belief. The survey also found that only 11% of respondents believed women should make the first move on a dating app. Jessica Small, a marriage counselor and therapist, explains that despite progress towards gender equality, traditional gender roles and beliefs still influence the dating landscape, especially in the early stages of dating when women may not feel comfortable being forward. However, once a couple is in a defined relationship, Small feels women usually take the lead in household and social matters.

by Aditi Shrikant
See full article at CNBC

See the top news on Bumble

Half of Singletons Have Received an Unwanted Nude Photo

THE SUN - A poll of 4K singletons who are actively dating found 28% are tired of negative experiences when looking for love, while 33% get easily irritated. Being ghosted without explanation (43%), getting stood up on a date (40%) and receiving unsolicited nude pictures (40%) are some of the main bugbears of those polled. The research was commissioned by Plenty of Fish, which has partnered with author and life coach, Michelle Elman, to create the 'Desirable Dating Guide'. It shares advice on how singles can tackle undesirable dating behaviours and engineer more positive experiences. Receiving unsolicited nude pictures proves a prevalent issue as nearly half of singles (48%) have previously been sent unsolicited pictures from a match or date.

by Becky Pemberton
See full article at The Sun

See the top news on Plenty Of Fish

Newborn Town to Acquire BlueCity

PR NEWSWIRE - Newborn Town has signed an agreement with Spriver to acquire Chizicheng Strategy Investment, a subsidiary of Spriver. This acquisition will make Newborn Town the controlling shareholder of BlueCity, which is owned by Chizicheng Strategy Investment. Upon completion of the acquisition, Newborn Town will consolidate the financial statements of BlueCity into its own financial statements. BlueCity is a leading player in the LGBTQ social vertical, with its flagship Blued app as the second-largest LGBTQ platform globally in terms of active users while holding the leading position in terms of users in several Asian countries and regions. Newborn Town is a company with diversified social networking services based in Hong Kong, listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company was founded in 2013 and provides various social networking services such as live streaming, interactive entertainment, and audio services. Newborn Town has a global footprint and operates in key markets, including Japan, Korea, North America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.

See full article at PR Newswire

See the top news on Blued

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments and VerySocialNetwork

Muzz Fights Third Lawsuit from Match Group and Calls for FTC Investigation

LINKEDIN - Match Group has sued Muzz (formerly muzmatch) for the third time over a patent related to digital matchmaking (Patent 666 - "Matching Process System and Method"), day after their appeal hearing in the UK. Muzz asserts that it declined Match Group's acquisition offers and has invested ~$1M in countering their legal actions. Muzz is calling on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Match Group's dominant position and treatment of competitors.

See full post at LinkedIn

See the top news on Match Group
See the top news on Muzz