Online Dating

Dating app OkCupid has rolled out a new Black Lives Matter badge for users to add to their profiles. The app has also added a list of questions about racial injustice and inequality for users to start meaningful conversations.

Users can add the badge by answering yes to the question: “Do you want to support the #BlackLivesMatter movement by adding a badge to your profile?” according to the OkCupid Blog. It is currently available in more than a dozen countries. 

OkCupid is also offering new questions as conversation prompts, starting with: “Is it okay to silently support racial equality?” Users can choose from multiple choice options which include “Yes, it’s your choice” and “No, it’s important to make your voice heard.” Users can also choose how important the question is to them for choosing a match.

Dating apps like Grindr, Hinge and OkCupid have been weighing whether or not to keep an ethnicity filter on their apps in the wake of protests against police violence in the U.S. and around the world. 

According to Forbes, Grindr announced that it would be dropping the filter as an option from its app in its next update. The company posted a statement on Twitter, adding: “We will not be silent. Black Lives Mater.” But this decision created a backlash among many who saw this move as too little, too late. @guillotineshout responded: “In solidarity we are removing our racism button” is the most tech company thing I could imagine.”

Grindr had received criticism before for the ethnicity filter, but other dating apps like OkCupid and Hinge who also have them, have chosen to keep theirs.

Beijing-based social app Momo is the latest company to see its revenue fall for the first quarter of 2020 due to the economic repercussions of a global pandemic. Interestingly, while other social networks and dating apps have seen an increase in users over the same period, Momo reported a decline there, too.

According to PanDaily, Momo’s net revenues decreased by 3.5% year over year to $3.59 billion Chinese yuan. The bulk of the revenue  - 64.9% - came from live-streaming services on Momo and its popular dating app Tantan. Tantan on the other hand reported an increase in revenue in the first quarter of 29.3 percent from Q1 of 2019. Tantan contributed 10 percent of Momo’s overall revenue for Q1 of 2020.

Dating app Tinder came under fire for banning users of its platform when they posted statements and photos supporting the Black Lives Matter movement. Shortly after the backlash, the company reversed their decision.

Millions of people around the world have been protesting police violence in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. Black Lives Matter and other racial justice organizations have crafted petitions and promoted donation requests as the movement has progressed. Some Tinder users were spreading the word through their Tinder profiles in order to further promote these petitions and causes, and dozens reported being banned from the platform.

According to BBC, one user took to Twitter to announce: “Yesterday, I changed my Tinder bio to 'All Black Lives Matter. If you don’t think so, swipe left.” That user was banned shortly thereafter.

Dating app WooPlus has just launched a major update of its app with a new look, logo and user experience in February, and a month later, it was the number one trending dating app on Google Play as registrations jumped 50 percent.

The self-described “dating app for curvy people” announced version 5.0, which includes new updates to profiles, a dating “assistant” to help guide users, and a new feature to curb ghosting behavior. This was good timing for the company as people went into lockdown worldwide in the wake of the pandemic, and many people isolating alone were turning to dating apps to feel connected.

The new profile update is described in the company’s press release as “unfolding,” because users can spend time with each profile swiping through their photos to get to a description – and therefore get a better sense of who they are. The company said that it allows users to show themselves more vividly and let people get to know them instead of judging quickly and moving on. 

Image: POF App

Back in September of 2019 POF received it’s first major facelift since the Match Group purchased the dating service back in 2015. This update kept most of the features the same but mainly was a branding and user interface refreshing.

The next big update happened in March when POF launched their Live Stream feature in partnership with The Meet Group (who also offers the same feature with a number of their apps). With this update and with those in the weeks that followed, it looks like POF made a few other tweaks to established features as well.