Finances

Online dating might be heading towards a sea change as VC firms invested about $31 million in 43 rounds of funding towards new dating apps in 2021. 

According to website Crunchbase which studies technology trends, the majority of companies raised angel, pre-seed and seed rounds, which means venture capitalist firms were interested in early-stage developments. (There were only three who received Series-A funding.)

Crunchbase also noted that every ten years there seems to be a shift in consumer preferences when it comes to dating app technology, and it usually follows the larger social app trends. Ten years ago, Instagram was the hot new app and dating apps like Tinder gamified their platforms to put photos front and center, where users could just look and swipe. 

Tech giant Apple faced another hefty fine this week from Dutch regulators over its non-compliance with a December ruling regarding its Apple Store operations. The company now owes over 25 million euros for failing to change its practices, according to Tech Crunch. 

The Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) ordered Apple to allow dating apps to use third party payment systems for in-app purchases. Prior to the ruling, developers had no choice but to go through the Apple Store for payment processing, and in addition, Apple charged them a thirty percent commission for all in-app purchases. Match Group had joined other companies in asking for an investigation into the company’s practices, claiming they were losing revenue and were unable to directly help customers with billing questions.

The ACM ordered Apple to pay the Authority five million euros per week until the issue is fixed, which has now gone unresolved five weeks past the deadline, bringing their total fines to about 25 million euros, according to Tech Crunch. Apple has fought the ruling, although it did make adjustments to its Store and allowed dating apps to use third-party payment platforms. However, Apple made the process difficult by forcing the app developers to pay a 27 percent fee on sales made through third parties, so dating app developers would still take a financial hit.

The Right Stuff, a new dating app to help conservatives connect more easily, is set to launch this summer. Peter Thiel, a billionaire tech entrepreneur who founded PayPal, has already signed on as an investor, according to Axios.

Thiel has invested $1.5 million in the new app, whose target market are conservative daters who live in large cities that tend to be more liberal. The app will debut in Washington D.C. and at first will be invitation-only. It will be free to download and use, with paid and subscription options added later for those who want access to more features.

John McEntee, a former political aide for the Trump administration, founded the dating app to help conservative singles find like-minded partners. “Conservatives deserve an easy way to connect,” McEntee said to Axios.

Bumble made its first acquisition by purchasing fast-growing French dating app Fruitz. 

Fruitz is particularly popular with younger Gen Z daters in France, and Bumble will be adding it to its suite of apps including Badoo, which is popular across Europe. Fruitz caught Bumble’s eye because of its growth among this demographic in Western Europe – including Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Netherlands in addition to France. Fruitz is also gaining ground in French-speaking Canada.

Bumble will not be rebranding Fruitz, according to Tech Crunch. It will provide the resources for Fruitz to expand and operate however, including AI technology, safety features, and marketing. Currently Fruitz is available free for download but users can purchase additional features for a cost.

Apple has complied with the rules of Dutch regulators to allow third party payment systems for dating apps instead of going through the Apple Store. However, it will be charging a 27 percent commission to allow these platforms to operate.

Tech Crunch reported that dating apps in the Netherlands are no longer required to go through the Apple Store for handling payments and billing questions, nor are they required to pay Apple 30 percent for each transaction made over a dating app. The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets previously fined Apple $5 million euros per week until it complied with its order.

However, dating app developers who use a third-party payment system are now required by Apple to pay a new commission of 27 percent, just slightly below the old charge. Apple is also requiring app developers to send a report of digital sales so they can invoice. And  as Tech Crunch pointed out, dating app developers looking to expand offerings to the Netherlands will have to submit two different apps for approval – the Dutch app and non-Dutch app.

China-based dating app Yumi has started beta testing experiences in its new metaverse, called Meta Town, hoping to attract young Gen Z daters who are interested in immersive experiences.

Users can create avatars based on their photos, explore the metaverse to find other virtual daters, and have real-time audio conversations with “artificial intelligence-powered translation,” according to the South China Morning Post, making it easier for daters who don’t speak the same language to connect.

The metaverse is a platform where people can interact via avatars in real time and in different virtual spaces, often with the ability to exchange virtual goods and services.