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

Aisle Launches Neetho, a Matchmaking App for Telugu Speakers

THE PLUNGE DAILY - Aisle, India's second most downloaded dating app, has launched its vernacular dating app 'Neetho', for Telugu singles residing in and out of India. Aisle's portfolio of apps currently include high intent dating app Aisle and vernacular apps 'Arike', 'Anbe' and 'Neetho'. Over the last two years, Aisle's revenue has grown by 70%, while the revenue from newly launched vernacular apps is growing 30% month on month.

by Rakesh Jha
See full article at The Plunge Daily

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WhiteLabelDating.com Has Reported a 30% Increase in Paying Users Since March

PR NEWSWIRE - Vaccines are giving people the confidence to go out and start meeting new people again. "The rate at which members are subscribing to sites across our network has risen by a third since Q2 this year, when the vaccination programme started," says Ross Williams, CEO of Venntro Media Group. Launched in 2003, Venntro.com is the company behind dating software provider, WhiteLabelDating.com. Empowering brands, marketers and affiliates to run their own online dating sites, White Label Dating provides the dating software, payment processing, customer support and more.

See full article at PR Newswire

See the top news on WhiteLabelDating.com

Dating App Swoovy Raised $1.2M

AUSTIN BUSINESS JOURNAL - Austin-based dating app Swoovy has raised $1.2M seed round. Swoovy, co-founded by Brooke Waupsh and Jeff McMahon in 2018, is turning dates into volunteer opportunities. Like Tinder or Bumble, Swoovy matches users who mutually swipe on each other. After matching, the couple can choose a volunteer event with a local nonprofit.

See full article at Austin Business Journal

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OkCupid Introduces Feature in Support of Abortion Rights

NEW YORK TIMES - OkCupid has introduced a way for users to clearly indicate their support of abortion rights: a "pro-choice" badge that appears prominently in a dating profile. The feature was created in response to the passage of Senate Bill 8, which has made abortion illegal in Texas. For every profile that adds the badge, OkCupid will donate $1 to Planned Parenthood. In recent years, OkCupid has offered users different badges to signal their stance on various political issues, including a "Black Lives Matter" badge and a "Voter" badge. In May, the company added an "I'm Vaccinated" badge.

by Valeriya Safronova
See full article at New York Times

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Chinese Province Tries Speed Dating to Retain Graduates

THE WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS - A Chinese province is seeking to encourage students to stay local after graduating by offering to help them find a spouse. Anhui's "marriage assistance project" will include speed-dating events for university-leavers designed to "increase the successful rate of marriage matching", according to an announcement by the province. The province also plans to publish magazines on love, marriage and family, run a digital dating platform on WeChat and form a network of volunteers according to local media.

by Jing Lu
See full article at The World University Rankings

Mark Brooks: Marriage rates and birth rates are falling. I think we'll see more instances of Government interventions to spur on dating and matchmaking initiatives in the future. For example, Singapore have taken an active interesting in encouraging matchmaking businesses in the past. Iran has Hamdam, a state approved dating app. (See July 2021 news).

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Tinder Is Rolling out Videos in Profiles to European Users

GRATIS DATING TIPS - Tinder now allows users to add videos to their profiles. This feature is currently being rolled out in Europe, Asia and Latin America.

by Michael Slender
See full article at Gratis Dating Tips

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Match Group Hopes for Savings From Looser App-Store Payment Rules

WALL STREET JOURNAL - In-app fees are Match's biggest expense, said CFO Gary Swidler. A federal judge in California last week ruled that Apple can't block app developers from sending their users outside its app store to pay. The case was brought by videogame company Epic Games. Separately, lawmakers in South Korea last month passed legislation that requires Apple and Google to open their app stores to alternative payment methods. An Apple spokesperson said the company is reviewing the California court ruling. Regarding the new law in South Korea, Apple said it believes the measure could undermine users' privacy protections, among other effects. "We believe user trust in App Store purchases will decrease as a result of this legislation," the company said. By offering a 10% discount on subscriptions, Match might be able to persuade about a third of its Apple users to pay directly, providing the company with an additional $80M in gross profit, predicts Jake Fuller, an analyst at investment firm BTIG.

by Kristin Broughton
See full article at Wall Street Journal

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Denmark Wants to Ban Life Sentence Prisoners From Online Dating

THE LOCAL - Convicted criminals serving life sentences should be restricted from coming into contact with the outside world by using social media to discuss their crimes publicly, said Denmark's Ministry of Justice. That would effectively ban them from activities such as featuring on podcasts or writing about their crimes on social media. Current rules enable prison inmates serving life to write to, call and receive visits from people with whom they have established contact during their sentences. The bill, which would need parliamentary backing to become law, could come into effect on January 1st 2022.

See full article at The Local