General News

Researchers have long been fascinated by the ways online dating has changed how we meet and match. A Pew Research Center analysis of recently released survey data from Stanford University found that online daters are more likely to choose partners who are different from them in race or ethnicity, income level, education or political affiliation.

The Stanford survey, How Couples Meet and Stay Together 2017, collected answers from 3,510 U.S. adults who are currently married, currently in a relationship, or who have ever previously been in a relationship. Couples who met online were more likely to date someone with a different education level, political ideology or race/ethnicity than couples who met offline. The difference between those who met online and offline was particularly significant for political party and race/ethnicity.

Image: Zoosk

Online dating conglomerate Spark Networks announced its purchase of Zoosk for $258 million USD. The popular dating app was acquired with a combination of cash and stock, and Spark will have full ownership of Zoosk shares.

According to the terms of the deal, Spark will issue 12,980,000 ADSs (American Depository Shares) to former Zoosk shareholders, valued at $152 million based on the closing price of Spark ADSs of $11.78 on June 28, 2019. It also provides for a cash consideration of $150 million, subject to adjustment, according to the company’s press release. Former Zoosk shareholders owned 49 percent of the company.

A new study found that dating app users tripled in India over the course of 2018, thanks mainly to women.

Dating app usage in the Indian market has huge potential, and not just because of the impressive growth over the last year. Overall user penetration still rather low at 2.7 percent as of 2018, but it’s expected to hit 3.2 percent by 2023 according to online market researcher Statista. Analysts also expect the market to be valued at $100 million in the next five to eight years, according to a report in LiveMint.

Dating apps have long used hidden scoring systems to rank users’ desirability. Tinder made headlines in 2016 when then-CEO Sean Rad revealed to Fast Company that Tinder users were assigned and matched according to an internal “Elo score.” Tinder has since retired the Elo score in favor of an updated algorithm, but it is not the only dating service that issues users an attractiveness rating.

UK-based app Once is one such service. Not only does Once use an attractiveness scale of one to five to guide its matching system, the company recently emailed its users to tell them their scores.

Image: Bumble

You swiped right, you chatted, you’re ready to take the plunge and meet in person - now what? If you’re in New York City, your next step could soon be a visit to a cafe and wine bar run by Bumble. The Austin-based company will open the space, which it has named Bumble Brew, in fall 2019 in Manhattan’s Soho neighborhood.

By day, Bumble Brew will be a cafe serving pastries and coffee. By night, it will transform into a wine bar serving $12 to $16 glasses of vino and a selection of small plates. Bumble intends for the 70-seat venue to be a meeting space for users of the app who are networking, on a date or meeting friends. It will also host demonstrations from female chefs, BFF parties, networking events and date nights.

The dating industry’s trial of the century is one step closer to taking place. Tinder co-founder Sean Rad’s $2 billion lawsuit against the dating app’s parent company, IAC, can move forward after a New York Supreme Court judge rejected IAC’s motion to dismiss the case. Rad and his co-plaintiffs may pursue their allegations that IAC purposely undervalued Tinder to avoid paying out billions of dollars in stock options to the dating app’s original team.

“We are pleased by the court's ruling denying IAC/Match's motion to dismiss and paving the way for this case to go to trial,'' Orin Snyder, Rad's lawyer, said in a statement. “IAC/Match robbed the Tinder founders and early employees and will now be held accountable by a jury for their multi-billion dollar scheme.”

Justine Sacco, a spokesperson for Match Group, also issued a statement: “This baseless lawsuit has no more merit today than it did a year ago when it was filed. We’re pleased the court dismissed some of these bogus claims and look forward to defeating the rest of them, both on appeal and in the trial court.”