THE GUARDIAN – June 15 – Apple's announcement last week that it was cracking down on some "hookup apps" sparked widespread confusion and concern that the company planned to remove dating apps – particularly Grindr and Scruff – from its app store. A spokesman from Apple said dating apps such as Grindr and Scruff would not be rejected based on the new guidelines. The guidelines ban "overtly sexual or pornographic material" including "'hookup' apps that may include pornography or be used to facilitate prostitution". The company defines this as "explicit descriptions or displays of sexual organs or activities intended to stimulate erotic rather than aesthetic or emotional feelings". Apple did not name any apps that would be affected.
Category: Reporters – Kari Paul
Is Facebook Destined To Be A Dating Site For Old People?
MARKETWATCH – May 5 – Facebook is entering a crowded space: The dating industry is worth ~$3B. A Facebook spokeswoman said the new dating feature will allow users to set up a dating profile separate from their normal Facebook account, and activity on dating profiles won't be shared on the News Feed. Users will not be matched with friends, but rather others who have marked themselves as "single". Meredith Golden, a dating coach, said she believes the new feature will be used largely by divorcees and users over 40. It's not clear, however, whether Facebook will charge for the dating service and, if so, how much.
by Kari Paul
See full article at MarketWatch
Young Single Americans Are Confused And Scared About Dating During #Metoo
MARKETWATCH – Feb 27 – #MeToo, a movement meant to highlight women's experiences with sexual assault and unwanted sexual advances, have put a damper on the dating experience. Single Americans say they are "extremely confused" about dating now, a recent survey of 3K singletons by dating service Three Day Rule found. Men are concerned about crossing boundaries, having their actions misinterpreted, or even adhering to traditional gender roles like paying for a date, said Three Day Rule CEO and founder Talia Goldstein. Meanwhile, some women said they were too worn out by inappropriate behavior or triggered by the news to want to spend time with men, and some worry about how and when to call out men they're dating for harassment.
by Kari Paul
See full article at MarketWatch
Liberals And Conservatives Can’t Even Use The Same Dating Apps
by Kari Paul
See full article at MarketWatch
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Q&A With OkCupid CEO Elie Seidman
WALL STREET JOURNAL – Aug 13 – After being named CEO of OkCupid in May 2016, Elie Seidman revamped the design of the app to include in-depth info about users and requiring them to answer questions about political beliefs.
Q: What has been the most difficult part about transitioning to CEO of an online dating site?
A: The real question when I started was, what is the core of this brand? The challenge that I saw was how consumers and customers conceptualize the category. We put our focus into "substance over selfies" – connecting based on shared sensibilities.
Q: Could you explain the "substance over selfies" focus?
A: We want people to meet someone based on who they are, not what they look like. We let users create their profiles by answering 15 iconic OkCupid questions.
Q: What is the biggest change happening in online dating right now?
A: Swiping apps went through a novelty phase. We're no longer in that phase.
Q: What does OkCupid do about harassment?
A: We have a very large and effective moderation team in the U.S. It combines artificial intelligence and machine learning to look at data points to see what's happening. If there is something a machine can't make a decision on, it gets kicked over to human moderators.
Q: What has been the most surprising online dating behavior you've learned about your users?
A: Dating habits do vary by city. For example, New York is the very worst U.S. city for guys messaging women, who reply to men's messages only 10% of the time.
Q: What is the biggest difference between meeting people online and meeting people in person?
A: There is an ineffable element of chemistry which you can't tell easily online.
Q: Where do big data and algorithms fall short when it comes to love?
A: The thing that we at OkCupid have going for us is that while we cannot replace chemistry, what we can do is find a lot of people with shared sensibility.
71% Of American Men Would Date Someone Who Doesn’t Speak English
Facebook Suggests Users Friend Dating Site Matches
MOTHERBOARD – Oct 12 -The issue has been coming up with alarming frequency for users of Tinder and OkCupid in recent months. Emilio Ferrara, a data science and machine learning professor at Indiana University who studies social networks said the most obvious answer would be that these apps are collecting and sharing your information. Tinder and OkCupid both denied they share user info. Brian Hamachek, a software engineer who has reversed engineered Tinder's API and is very familiar with Facebook's API said there is no reason to believe those two sites are comparing your data. He believes the Tinder and Facebook overlap is most likely a side effect of similar algorithms working to connect people.
by Kari Paul
See full article at Motherboard