Dating Services

OkCupid's Member Pledge

There must be something in the air. Not long after Tinder issued a statement asking users to remove their tiger photos, OkCupid has launched an attack on another infamous dating pest: the unsolicited dick pic.

The company took a stand against harassment and unwanted, sexually explicit messages in a blog entitled “Because You’re Better Than A Dick Pic.” The post announced a new OkCupid Member Pledge, which requires all users to agree not to send objectionable content before they are allowed to interact with the OkCupid community.

“While we rely in large part on our iconic questions to create potentially meaningful connections, it’s the people on either end of the app who ultimately have to cultivate a spark,” says OkCupid CEO Elie Seidman. “With the Member Pledge, we’re putting the power in our daters’ hands. This new feature reminds our members that, if you wouldn’t say it to someone you just met at a bar, you shouldn’t be saying it online.”

Popular dating app Bumble is a rising star among competitors to Tinder, mainly because of its female-friendly focus, giving women the power to initiate contact with matches. Now, Bumble is expanding beyond the dating scene with its new platform BumbleBizz, aiming to connect professionals looking for a new job, a business partner, or to hire new talent.

According to a feature in Fast Company, Bumble aims to give LinkedIn a run for their money, focusing once again on women in the workplace. Bumble itself is a female-only operation, with CEO Whitney Wolfe (a former co-founder of Tinder), at the helm. She has hired a team of women to help grow the company and launch BumbleBizz.

Notably, Wolfe is aiming to attract women. BumbleBizz works as its dating app counterpart does, where anyone can create profiles and swipe, but women initiate contact. While LinkedIn might be king of networking opportunities, Bumble aims to give it a run for its money by targeting a female demographic and giving them a leg-up.

Dating apps catering to exclusive clientele are becoming an increasingly prominent part of the industry. The League may be the most famous example, but there’s also Inner Circle and the mysterious Raya. Even Tinder has gotten in on the game with Tinder Select, a secret, members-only version of the app for its top users.

Loveflutter is the latest company to jump on the elite bandwagon with a new premium version of its app, called BLUE. BLUE promises to admit users into an exclusive world full of “celebrities and other Twitter blue tick holders” - in other words, you can woo Twitter’s hottest verified singles, providing you too have that little blue check by your name.

In a world overrun by YouTube stars and Instagram influencers, BLUE may sound like a ploy to appeal to today’s social media-obsessed singles - and in some ways it probably is - but it also serves a genuine purpose: safety.

Dating apps are proving to be a surprisingly loud voice in the fight against hate, harassment, and cruelty.

First, Tinder spoke out for animal rights by asking users to remove photos taken with tigers, which are often mistreated in the name of letting tourists take selfies with the world’s wildest inhabitants.

Then, OkCupid took a stand against harassment and unwanted, sexually explicit messages by introducing a Member Pledge to remind users to treat each other with kindness and respect.

Now, following the violence and tragic death of Heather Heyer in Charlottesville, Virginia, dating services are again stepping up to ensure their users can meet in a safe and welcoming space, free from hatred and discrimination.

The guys-posing-with-tigers-on-Tinder trope isn't just a played out profile pic, it's a global phenomenon that’s inspired Tumblr, blogs, think pieces, and a scolding letter from PETA. It may now be coming to an end.

To honor International Tiger Day on July 29, Tinder announced it’s taking a stand against photos taken with tigers and other wild animals.

“While most of us are on Tinder to find a soulmate or a date, appearing on the app isn't fun for everyone,” reads PETA’s original letter. “What might, at first swipe, look like a harmless picture actually means that someone was caged, dominated, and tied down or drugged before their photo was taken and uploaded online. If this happened to one of your users on a Tinder date, you'd block the profile of the person responsible immediately. Unfortunately, this is the reality for tigers, lions, and other big cats who are featured in an alarming number of Tinder profile photos.”

Tinder's New Look

Will dating apps soon be saying sayonara to the swipe? Tinder, the app often credited with popularizing the swipe gesture, has gotten an updated look and new navigation gestures to go with it.

“Over the past few months, we’ve been hard at work refreshing the user experience,” said a company blog post. “Today, we’re excited to start rolling out a more seamless way to navigate Tinder for our users around the world.”

Tinder promises a new user experience that is both smarter and better looking. On the aesthetics front, the app now boasts a cleaner design and photos take up more real estate, extending all the way to the edges of the screen. Tinder calls the makeover “part of an ongoing effort to make our app as fun and attractive as the community it serves.”