PR NEWSWIRE - June 15 - Datefit, a community of motivated fitness lovers, is launching a new "First Date on Us" program. The program, available through summer, encourages members of Datefit to venture out into the dating world again. Datefit has partnered with Starbucks, Robeks, and Smoothie King. Users can redeem their "First Date on Us" gift once they are matched with someone on the app.
Datefit Offers "First Date on Us"
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Podcast - Have Dating Apps Killed Romance?
THE ECONOMIST - June 15 - In this podcast, Whitney Wolfe Herd, the founder and CEO of Bumble, talks to Anne McElvoy about whether dating apps have killed romance. Is she cashing in on feminism by building a brand around female empowerment? She explains why she's calling for more diversity in the tech industry. And, what's her mantra for love?
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Why Malaysia Is Cracking Down on Online Sugar Daddies
VICE - June 15 - Malaysia has cracked down on a dating app that connects sugar babies with wealthy sugar daddies. Started by 34-year-old entrepreneur Darren Chan in 2017, Sugarbook had been gaining traction among young Malaysians, particularly students, who turned to the site for quick money during the pandemic. Chan was arrested in February and is now facing trial.
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Tinder to Encourage 'Gen Z' to Get COVID-19 Vaccine
BUSINESS TODAY - June 15 - As a part of the initiative, Tinder will be sharing educational guides and enabling member access to an all-new vaccine centre. It has introduced stickers for users to express their vaccination status and sentiment on their profiles.
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How Clubhouse Has Changed the World of Dating
DATING ADVICE - June 14 - Clubhouse has allowed people to connect after a year of feeling isolated. Clubhouse is an audio-only app that allows anyone to host or listen to podcast/radio-like shows on anything they want. While there are endless topics to talk about, the one that has really changed everything is the dating and matchmaking world. When matchmakers Bonnie Winston and Carmelia Ray started the "Ask a Celebrity Matchmaker" room, it went on fire. One woman ran a dating room for 12 straight days and had people in different time zones take over for her when she needed to sleep. In the beginning, as people got familiar with the types of rooms on Clubhouse and found discussions that they enjoyed, new tribes were formed. One of the issues with dating apps is that the energy can be really weird. Everybody knows what everyone is there for, and everyone is looking around and judging and weighing. Clubhouse is like a street fair, people would be smiling and interacting with each other. And these totally normal interactions are when we are our better selves.
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Hawaya Lets Muslims Find Their Lifetime Bae With Smart Algorithms
MASHABLE - June 11 - Hawaya is a matrimonial app out of Egypt that's tailored for "safe and conservative matchmaking". The name Hawaya itself was inspired by the Arabic word 'hawa', which translates to 'love'. According to Hawaya, in 2020 alone, one in three men on the app reported that they aimed to get married as soon as possible. ~50% of Hawaya matches engaged in two-way conversations. With the help of an algorithm and an AI engine, users are matched with compatible matches, based on their answers in tandem with their regular left-or-right swipes.
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OkCupid Rolls out "I'm Vaccinated" Feature
HINDUSTAN TIMES - June 11 - This new feature will help users identify if a person whom they are interested in has been vaccinated. This feature has been rolled out as a result of OkCupid recently undertaking a study, which revealed that there has been a monumental increase in conversations around vaccines on users' profiles between March and June this year.
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Bumble Celebrates Its Diverse Community With Latest Campaign
EXCHANGE4MEDIA - June 14 - Bumble launched its new campaign, Find Them On Bumble, (Mumbai and New Delhi) aimed at celebrating its diverse community. The campaign encourages single Indians to make the first move from the comfort of their homes to forge healthy and equitable connections on Bumble. As per Bumble's recent nationwide survey, 54% of Mumbaikars claimed they prefer 'slow dating' and getting to know someone better before meeting in person. Nearly two in five Delhiites surveyed claim they are more likely to go on a video or an audio date before meeting someone IRL.
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Momo Looks for Excitement With Tantan Overhaul
SEEKING ALPHA - June 11 - Momo believes its underperforming Tantan app could grow strongly following a major overhaul now in the works. Tang Yan's move from the CEO's office was just the beginning of a bigger shakeup. That shakeup claimed new victims in April with the departure of the CEO and COO of the Tantan app that Momo acquired for $760M in 2018. Momo's current CEO Wang Li, formerly Momo's longtime COO, confirmed the changes at the top of Tantan on the company's action-packed investor call following the release of its quarterly earnings this week. Investors seemed to welcome the news, with Momo’s shares up 10% since the announcement of the company's latest quarterly results. The company's revenue fell 3.4% to $543M in the Q1, and Momo said it expects another decline of ~5% in the current quarter. Both of those figures do represent an improvement from the 12% revenue decline from last year, including a 19% drop in the Q4. Q1 profit was similarly uninspired, falling 14%.
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Behind Bumble's Fight Against Unsolicited Nudes
BUMBLE - June 14 - When Whitney Wolfe Herd founded Bumble back in 2014, safety was central to her mission. After learning one in three women using Bumble had received non-consensual lewd photos, Bumble introduced proprietary technology that automatically detects and blurs nude images. Bumble has been working with legislators at the state level to create penalties for sending unsolicited lewd photos. Now, the sharing of a lewd photo online without the recipient's consent in Texas is a Class C misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $500. This year, Bumble has worked with legislators to introduce additional state-level bills in both California and New York.
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OPW - June 14 - No fluff, just daily executive news summaries. Subscribe here to get the daily dose by email.
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SafeDate.io Wins Accelerator Space
LINKEDIN - June 12 - SafeDate.io is headed by mature CEO Sid Klein (Wharton, P&G) and is building safer dating apps focused on eliminating predators and victimization. They just scored space at a 28k sq ft accelerator hub at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) which gets them working space, interns, and guidance from faculty and mentors, along with introductions to investors, and money to cover expenses. This came as part of SafeDate.io being named a finalist in the FAU 2021 Tech Runway Startup competition. The award recognizes exceptional high-growth potential and disruptive technology.
Mark Brooks: One to watch. Trust and safety are paramount in our space, so no wonder Sid's new product is resonating. I'll be intrigued to see what kind of product they deliver.
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Internet Dating Jobs Listing Update - June 2021
OPW - June 11 - The new Internet dating jobs listing is live on the Internet Dating Jobs blog.
Below see a couple of this month's most interesting offers:
Bumble
VP Growth Marketing (USA or London)
Dil Mil
CMO
Lovoo
Vice President of Growth
Match Group
VP, Product
Reflex Media
VP of Finance
The League
VP Marketing
Tinder
Tinder Business Director, UK & Nordics
To see more open positions go here.
Do you have an idating industry job offer which is not included? Please, send it to tips@onlinepersonalswatch.com and we will add it to the list.
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Grindr Embraces the Return of Live Events for Pride Month
ADWEEK - June 11 - Grindr is supporting 10 iconic LGBTQ+ venues across the US. The pandemic wiped out most Pride Month in-person events in 2020. Grindr is welcoming the return toward normalcy for Pride Month 2021 with its "Grindr Pride: The Comeback" campaign.
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Israeli Man Starts Matchmaking Service for Non-vaccinated Jewish Singles
FORWARD.COM - June 11 - Three decades ago, Israeli real-estate agent Daniel Michael was set up with his wife by a neighbor. Now, Michael is providing the same service, but for a niche demographic: Jewish singles who have opted not to get the COVID-19 vaccine. "There are many singles who are only interested in someone that is not getting the shot," Michael said. "And I figured maybe I'm the one to put them together." With ~57% of its population fully vaccinated, Israel has led the world in immunization rates.
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