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

Why Some People Are Turning to Face-to-Face Apps First

THE CONVERSATION - People are eager to meet in person, and there are apps that focus on bringing people together in person. One of these is Thursday. It is live just once a week (on Thursdays) and gives users 24 hours to arrange a date. This cuts down on the onerous swiping and messaging. Thursday also hosts in-person events. Using dating apps does take time and effort. A large survey by Badoo found that millennials spend on average 90 minutes a day looking for a date, by swiping, liking, matching and chatting. In 2016, Hinge's data found that only one in 500 swipes resulted in phone numbers being exchanged. This may lead to online dating fatigue.

by Martin Graff
See full article at The Conversation

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Background Checks on Dating Apps

EYEWITNESS NEWS - One study found 81% of online daters misrepresented some aspect about themselves, be it height, weight, or age. The Federal Trade Commission says phishing and dating scams on apps cost victims $304M in 2020, double the amount of the previous year. Top10.com researched the background check and user verification processes for the most popular dating apps and websites.

Match Group
The company announced in March 2021 a partnership with nonprofit background check technology Garbo. The app provides historical information about domestic violence and abuse.

Badoo
The app makes sure the person is legitimate by having users take an image in a unique pose to verify. Badoo also allows users to further verify using a phone number or social network account and marks verification on their profile.

Bumble
Bumble uses a combination of AI and human-led monitoring systems to review accounts and messages for violations of their terms of service. These include imagery or language that discriminates against someone's race, ethnicity, disability, gender expression, and a range of other criteria.

AdultFriendFinder
AdultFriendFinder doesn't do background checks. While users are to accept sole responsibility for their own interactions with other users, users have recourse to report account abuse, and moderators are also looking out for abnormal behavior on the site.

Ashley Madison
User verification and background checks are counterintuitive to the goal of Ashley Madison.

Happn
Similar to Badoo, Happn users have the opportunity to certify their profiles by taking a video posing with unique head gestures, as instructed by the app. While Happn claims noncertified profiles are not fake, they do not provide any additional background on whether a vetting process exists for noncertified profiles.

Zoosk
Zoosk provides online dating safety tips for people new to dating online. Although, in those tips, it's suggested that users do their own research on potential suitors because Zoosk asserts it does not "routinely screen our members, inquire into the background of our members, attempt to verify information provided by our members, or conduct criminal screenings of our members."

Eharmony
While the dating service does not conduct an official background check, it does provide users with an 80-question survey to narrow in on the specificity of the website's services.

Grindr
Grindr notes in its terms of service that it does not conduct criminal or other background screenings of its users and doesn't verify the information users provide.

by Vivian Muniz
See full article at PA Homepage

Russia's App Store Lost 7K Apps Since Its Invasion of Ukraine

TECH CRUNCH - The Russian App Store has lost 6,982 mobile apps since the start of the Ukraine invasion, as numerous companies have now pulled their apps and games from Apple's iPhone and iPad App Stores in the country. Amid the widespread exits, several Big Tech companies' apps continue to rank highly on the Russian App Store. Russia is not the only country being impacted in this way. Many publishers also removed their apps and games from the App Store in Belarus. That country has now seen a loss of 5,900 apps since the invasion's start. Bumble and Badoo are gone, too.

by Sarah Perez
See full article at Tech Crunch

Badoo: Younger Users Date Differently

DAILYMAIL.CO.UK - While a visit to a swanky restaurant or fancy cocktail bar may be the top choice for some singletons, Gen Z daters have a totally different idea when it comes to romance. According to Badoo, young people are snubbing typical dating spots for crafting classes, gym sessions or even 'dawn dates' - where singletons meet up for coffee or breakfast before starting work. Tina Wilson, who founded dating app Wingman, says Gen Z singletons are 'cutting to the chase', when it comes to meeting potential partners.

by Monica Greep
See full article at DailyMail.co.uk

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Badoo Parodies Dating App Behavior That Would Never Fly in Real Life

ADWEEK - Badoo parodies some of these maligned actions in a campaign calling for better dating etiquette. "Let's Fix Dating" comprises five relatable vignettes that bring awkward exchanges common on apps into the real world.

by Brittaney Kiefer
See full article at AdWeek

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Bumble's First Acquisition Raises 3 Red Flags

THE MOTLEY FOOL - Bumble recently agreed to buy Fruitz, a French dating app that lets its users express their intentions with four fruit-based metaphors: cherries, grapes, watermelons, and peaches. On the surface, Bumble's acquisition makes sense. It only operates two main apps, Bumble and Badoo. However, the deal also raises three red flags about Bumble that can't be ignored.

1. Bumble needed to buy more growth
   Bumble ended Q3 of 2021 with 2.89M paying users across its two main apps, which represented 5% YOY growth. By comparison, Match's paying users rose 16% YOY to 16.3M.
2. Fruitz probably won't add many paid users
   Fruitz has been downloaded ~5.6M times globally for iOS and Android devices, according to Sensor Tower. And we don't know how many paid users it actually has.
3. Selling Badoo makes more sense
   Bumble generated more than twice as much average revenue per paying user than Badoo. Instead of acquiring another European-oriented app to offset Badoo's slowdown, it would have arguably made more sense to sell Badoo and reinvest that cash into Bumble's overseas expansion.

by Leo Sun
See full article at The Motley Fool

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Majority of Daters Feel Burnout From Seeing Incompatible People

METRO.CO.UK - For many single people relying on apps to meet new romantic interests, there's a lot of wading through incompatibility. Research from dating app Badoo found that 78% of daters can relate to this experience. Respondents said they feel stress and burnout due to mismatched intentions, particularly when their dates aren't honest about what they want from a romantic connection from the off. On average, they found singles have six failed dates a year because of mismatched intentions, spending ~£285 a year on bad dates. Based on this feedback, Badoo have now launched intention setting on the app so that people can list one of the following on their profile: Here to date; Ready for a relationship; AND Open to chat.

by Tanyel Mustafa
See full article at Metro.co.uk

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Bumble Drops Below IPO Price

GURUFOCUS - Bumble stock dipped 19% following the release of Q3 earnings which disappointed investors because of lackluster paid subscriber additions. The company is likely to come under more pressure in the coming months. Badoo saw its revenue decline 3% to $58M in Q3, while its number of paid users dipped 9% YOY to 1.33M. The average revenue per paid user rose by 6%. Revenue from the Bumble app came to $142M for the quarter, up 39% YOY. The total number of paid users and the average revenue per user increased by 5% and 19%, respectively. Although these numbers look promising, it is worth noting that the company reported a decline in paid users from the second to third quarters, which suggests the strong momentum behind the company’s online dating products is waning.

by Dilantha De Silva
See full article at GuruFocus

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Bumble Q3 Results: Revenue up 24%, Net Loss ~11M

BUMBLE - Bumble total revenue increased 24% to $201M, Bumble app revenue increased 39% to $142M. Badoo app and other revenue declined 3% to $58M. Total paying users increased to 2.9 M. Net loss was $10.7M, compared to net loss of $22.8M last year.

See full article at Bumble website

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Badoo Launches a Rude Message Detector

DAILYMAIL.CO.UK - Rude Message Detector will automatically flag any insulting, discriminatory or overly sexual messages. The tool uses machine learning, a form of AI, to distinguish between 'banter' and actual verbal abuse, such as 'identity hate' towards transgender people. It's been rolled out for all Badoo users worldwide. With Rude Message Detector, Badoo shows the recipient a timely pop-up message asking if everything is okay and encourages them to report the sender if the message made them uncomfortable. The pop-up says: 'Looks like this person used some rude language, so we're just checking if you still want to hear from them.' It then gives users two options to click on - 'Yes, keep chatting' and 'No, block and report'.

by Jonathan Chadwick
See full article at DailyMail.co.uk

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How Advances in Technology and Science Could Impact the Dating and Matchmaking Industry

FORBES - Aug 5 - The art and science of matchmaking is a billion-dollar industry. Yet, many pitfalls exist such as safety, security and ineffective matching methods. These issues aren't as prevalent with professional matchmakers, however, not every singleton can afford to pay $15K and $150K for a high-end matchmaking service. This exposes a huge opening in the industry for dating apps and professional matchmakers to merge. How realistic is this, and what kind of technology or science can help achieve this idealistic goal?

Blockchain Technology
Companies such as Hicky and Viola have both implemented blockchain to increase transparency by requiring users to validate their identity via face and voice recognition, which is then fully encrypted and stored into the blockchain.

Artificial Intelligence
AI can help gather in-app user behavior data for machine learning algorithms to curate more relevant matches based on its users' core values, beliefs and personality traits. Coffee Meets Bagel, Hinge, Tinder and Badoo all now use AI .

Augmented Reality
AR can be described as a visual or audio overlay of digital life on real life, distinct from the purely digital landscape of virtual reality (VR).

DNA Matchmaking
DNA Romance is a dating app that matches partners based on the information hidden in their DNA to forecast romantic chemistry. Dr. Tim Sexton built the app on the basis that partners with opposite immune system genes (MHC genes) have much higher romantic chemistry.

by Taylor Wade
See full article at Forbes

Bumble to Offer Trauma Support to Victims of Sexual Assault

IRISH NEWS - Aug 4 - Bumble is partnering with Bloom, an online service run by UK-based Chayn. When a survivor reports sexual assault or relationship abuse to Bumble's feedback team, they will be provided with a code to access up to six therapy sessions as well as one-to-one chat support. The service is due to begin later this year, with plans to expand to Badoo in 2022.

See full article at Irish News

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Bumble Continues to Deliver as the Lock-Up Expiration Nears

SEEKING ALPHA - July 2 - Bumble caters to ~40M monthly users and 2.8M paying users across the globe. Competing with Tinder, which still leads the way, Bumble is the 2nd highest-grossing app in the world when it comes to online dating. While the company reported strong Q1 earnings, Bumble stock fell sharply after reporting the numbers, pushing the stock price below the Initial public offering price of $43. After surging by over 70% on debut in February, Bumble stock hit a low of $38.91 on May 24 as analysts weighed on the company's first-quarter performance. Bumble reported revenue of $171M. Bumble's paid user count grew 44% YoY to 1.35M, while Badoo also saw 19% YoY paid user growth to 1.45M. In an important announcement, the company confirmed that it is planning to expand its horizons by emerging as a full-scale social media company, not just a company focused on providing online dating solutions. In terms of international expansion, Bumble has been seeing strong growth in Germany with Monthly Average Users growing at ~160 % YoY. Bumble's premium app is expected to be rolled out globally by the end of the year.

by Dilantha De Silva
See full article at Seeking Alpha

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Badoo Has Banned Screenshots

INSIDER - July 1 - Badoo has introduced a Screenshot Block feature. Android users can no longer take screenshots of the app, and iOS users will get a warning message. The new policy is meant to discourage sharing private information and photos without permission.

by Andrea Michelson
See full article at Insider

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Bumble's Q1 Results: Revenue up, Paying Users up 30%

GLOBE NEWSWIRE - May 13 - Q1 revenue increased YOY to $170.7M (Bumble $112.6M, Badoo $58.1M). Total Paying Users increased 30% YOY to 2.8M, compared to 2.2M. Adjusted EBITDA was $46.1M, compared to $12.7M last year. The operating Q1 loss is $112.4M, compared to $53M in Q2 2020. Bumble anticipates revenue and adjusted EBITDA for the Q2 and year ending Dec 31, 2021 to be:

• Q2 revenue in the range of $175 to $178M, adjusted EBITDA in the range of $42 to $44M.
• Full year 2021 revenue in the range of $724 to $734M, adjusted EBITDA in the range of $177 to $182M.

See full article at Globe Newswire

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