AXIOS - Grindr is partnering with Spectrum Labs to implement an AI system for content moderation. Spectrum's contextual AI service works to solve specific issues, such as identifying the sale of drugs and sex as well as trying to detect underage users. Spectrum has a set of algorithms it has tuned over the years.
352 posts categorized "Grindr"
Grindr Partners With Spectrum Labs on AI moderation
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The Teens Slipping Through the Cracks on Dating Apps
THE ATLANTIC - Most dating apps mandate that users be at least 18 to join. When signing up, users must provide their birthday or link a social-media profile that includes their date of birth. But they are not required to provide any proof of their age. A representative for Bumble shared that the company uses "automated and live verification procedures" to block users under 18 and prevent them from rejoining. Match Group said that the company uses "technology including AI" to search for suspicious language "that indicates a user may be underage". The GBH News Center for Investigative Reporting found that from 2015 to 2021, ~100 men were charged in the US with crimes related to sexually assaulting minors or attempting to engage in a sexual act with a minor through Grindr. Governments have started to take notice of reports like these.
by Moises Mendez II
See full article at The Atlantic
See the top news on Match Group
See the top news on Bumble
See the top news on Grindr
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Grindr Makes a Statement With Majority-LGBTQ Board
FORTUNE - Grindr plans to go public in a $2.1B SPAC deal. Its board boasts 60% LGBTQ representation and four first-time public directors. The gay dating app's executive rank is a prime example of a 21st century modern board not just in terms of diverse representation but also in the unique medley of professional backgrounds and skills held by directors.
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Data Privacy and Harassment Could Spoil Grindr's Wall Street Romance
PROTOCOL - Introduced in 2009, Grindr pioneered the use of then-new iPhone location features to show nearby users ready to chat or go further. On May 9, Grindr announced it planned to go public through a SPAC deal that would value the company at $2.1B, almost 10 times what it sold for four years ago. If shareholders approve the merger, Grindr will finally be a public company. Grindr primarily makes money off ads, with some revenue from user subscriptions for premium features. ~94% of Grindr's 11M monthly active users worldwide use it for free, according to an investor presentation. The company is promising investors that there's $14 trillion to be made serving the LGBTQ+ community. Grindr had revenue of $104.5M in 2020, growing ~40% to $145.8M in 2021. Grindr lost $13.1M in 2020 and made $5.1M last year. Grindr has been criticized for weak privacy protections. It also has comparatively sparse resources devoted to moderating its 11M monthly active users: According to the company, it has 75 moderators contracted through the company PartnerHero. Grindr recently partnered with Spectrum Labs, an AI company, to help scale its content moderation.
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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
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Grindr to Go Public in $2.1B SPAC Deal
REUTERS - Grindr will go public through a merger with a blank-check acquisition firm - a deal that values it at $2.1B and features Tiga Investments CEO Raymond Zage on both sides of the transaction. Grindr said its existing shareholders would own 78% of the company after the merger, which comes two years after China's Kunlun Tech divested it for $620M due to U.S. national security concerns. While Grindr did not disclose the identities of its existing shareholders, Reuters previously reported that Zage had a 41% stake in the consortium that acquired Grindr. Zage continues to be an investor in Grindr. Tiga Acquisition, the Singapore-based special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that will merge with Grindr, is controlled by Zage. Under the deal, Grindr will receive $284M in cash from Tiga and up to $100M in a forward purchase agreement.
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Grindr User Data Has Been for Sale for Years
WALL STREET JOURNAL - Grindr's user locations were collected and sold via ad networks since at least 2017; Grindr says it has curtailed the data it shares. Grindr cut off the flow of location data to any ad networks, ending the possibility of such data collection two years ago, the company said. The data didn't contain personal information such as names or phone numbers. But the Grindr data were in some cases detailed enough to infer things like romantic encounters between specific users, as well as identify clues to people's identities such as their workplaces and home addresses. "Since early 2020, Grindr has shared less information with ad partners than any of the big tech platforms and most of our competitors," a spokesman for Grindr said in a statement.
by Byron Tau & Georgia Wells
See full article at Wall Street Journal
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Watch the Trailer for Grindr's 1st Original Comedy Series Bridesman
OUT - Gay dating app Grindr is launching its first original comedy series this April, and the official trailer just dropped. Bridesman will be six episodes long and follows a "gay and awful" man named Terry as he is "forced to fulfill bridesmaid duties for his best friend despite his disdain for the construct of marriage and an electric sexual connection with the groom."
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Which Dating Apps Got the Most Press Coverage Last Year?
OPW - Last year, we mentioned 281 internet dating industry brands in 1,066 posts. Although Match Group and its brands are clearly dominating this list, Bumble takes first place this time, even though only by one post. Here is the full list of companies with the most press coverage for last year.
- Bumble (131 posts)
- Tinder (130 posts)
- Match Group (96 posts)
- OkCupid (43 posts)
- Hinge (42 posts)
- Match.com (35 posts - shared)
- Grindr (35 posts - shared)
- The Meet Group (31 posts)
- Blued (23 posts)
- Spark Networks (22 posts)
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Grindr Introduces Albums, a New Way to Share Private Content
GRINDR BLOG - Albums are the easiest way to share photos with other users on Grindr. In the last year there's been a 113% increase in the number of times users send multiple photos and a 72% increase in the number of expiring photos sent. Grindr learned that users want more authority over the photos they share on the app. They want to be able to share multiple photos with one click, and to revoke access just as easily.
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China Bans Grindr Citing National Law on Security
OPINDIA - Grindr started disappearing from several app stores available in China after its cyberspace authority launched an internet clean-up campaign to ensure a "healthy, festive and auspicious online environment".
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Dating Apps Join Forces for Valentine's Vaccination Push
ADWEEK - Tinder, Ourtime, Match, OKCupid, Hinge, Plenty of Fish and Grindr are promoting vaccinations to their users. Ahead of Valentine's Day, the apps have allowed users to display vaccination badges and stickers on their dating profiles to advertise their Covid-19 status to increase their chances of finding a match. Data from Hinge has claimed that its users who share their vaccination status on dating apps receive 30% more matches than those who don't. OKCupid has seen ~1M of its users add a badge stating "I'm Vaccinated" to their profile pages, while Grindr also claims that the badge is among its three most popular.
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Grindr to Appeal Norwegian Fine for Privacy Violations
AXIOS - Grindr plans to file an appeal of a $7M fine from Norwegian regulators. Norway found that Grindr illegally disclosed user data to advertisers, but the company says it is being singled out for widely used practices.
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Grindr Disappears From China App Stores
FRANCE24 - Gay dating app Grindr has disappeared from multiple app stores in China as authorities tighten control of the country's already heavily policed internet. Although China decriminalised homosexuality in 1997, same-sex marriage is illegal and LGBTQ issues remain taboo. Local Grindr competitors such as Blued remain available for download.
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Can Grindr Become More Than "Just a Hookup App"?
MIC - Grindr was first introduced to the queer community in 2009 by a gay tech entrepreneur named Joel Simkhai, whose original intentions were to connect queer people with similar interests. Simkhai recognized that people would view Grindr as nothing more than a hookup app, but he had much higher hopes for it from the start. But the app's "only-for-hookups" stigma has stuck around and Grindr has been trying to shake it off ever since. It apparently didn't help when Simkhai sold the app to a Chinese Kunlun Tech in 2016. The new president, Scott Chen, viewed Grindr as a hookup app and simply focused on increasing the number of daily users rather than trying to improve it. One former employee said that for Chen, "anything that detracted from encouraging hookups was seen as a distraction." In March of 2020, Grindr was sold once again, this time to San Vicente Acquisition. The company has since pivoted back toward what Chen tried to move away from - including the relaunch of their digital publication, "INTO". Grindr users tapped into the app's unofficial housing market during the pandemic. Some people also use Grindr to further their careers.
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