Finances

Dating app Bumble exceeded analysts’ expectations when the company reported its first quarter earnings, with revenues and new subscriber numbers significantly higher than what was initially predicted.

Revenue for the dating company rose 43 percent from the same quarter in 2020 to $171 million, up from $79.1 million this time last year, beating expert estimates and even the company’s own predictions. According to Marketwatch, Bumble shared that the number of total paying users also rose significantly, up 30 percent to 2.8 million compared to 2.2 million from the first quarter of 2020. 

This past quarter was also good for Bumbles other dating brands like Badoo. Revenue for them increased year-over-year to $58.1 million.

Online dating company Match Group’s stock rose after details of its first quarter earnings report were announced. Shares were up 5.3 percent to $146.30 according to recent trading reports.

Barron’s reported that Match Group posted revenue of $668 million for the quarter, up significantly from original Wall Street forecasts of $650.7 million. And profits were also up 57 cents a share, higher than the expected 40 cents per share. Match Group owns a range of popular dating apps, including Tinder, OkCupid, Plenty of Fish, and Hinge as well as niche apps like BLK and OurTime.

Tinder is still the star of Match Group’s offerings and its main revenue stream, with 18 percent growth in revenue for the dating app. However, Match Group noted that it has seen 30 percent growth in the rest of its business. Notably, some of its lesser-known apps like Hinge are seeing a surge of growth as the company invests more in its other offerings, too.

Match Group testified in front of the U.S. Senate recently, arguing that tech giants Apple and Google are allowing underage users to access its dating apps.

Underage users have been able to download dating apps with age restrictions even while signed into their Apple or Google accounts, simply by clicking “yes” on a pop-up verification notice that asks if they are 18 or older. Neither Apple nor Google cross-checks the verification with their own data, and neither has set up a process to prevent these users from accessing the apps beyond the pop-up notice. 

Match Group’s chief legal officer Jared Sine testified on April 21st, according to Bloomberg News, saying that Apple and Google are allowing people under 18 years of age to download their dating apps despite the age restrictions. According to Sine, these companies are aware of the problem and ignoring it anyway; and they refuse to share personal user data with Match Group to address it.

Apple announced in early April that it will soon be rolling out its new privacy notification for users who download any app from its store. The company didn’t give a specific launch date but said that it would happen “in the coming weeks” according to Reuters. 

Apple has created a one-time notice that requires an app developer to ask for the user’s consent before the app is able to track personal data and share it with third parties, according to Reuters. CEO Tim Cook described the notification in a podcast with tech journalist Kara Swisher, saying it will appear as a short checklist of how the app will use data, to make it easier and more transparent than sifting through the standard pages-long privacy policies that most people do not read. 

Digital advertisers and app developers are worried that the notification would cause many more users to decline permissions. 

Dating app Bumble just reported revenue in Q4 of 2020 that exceeded expectations, prompting shares to jump as high as 5 percent. This news comes on the heels of the company’s stock market debut.

The company reported revenue of $165.6 million in the fourth quarter, a 31.1 percent increase for the first earnings report since the company went public, according to Reuters. (Analysts had originally expected revenue of $163.3 million.) Bumble expects the current quarter to generate between $163 million and $165 million as well. 

Reuters also reported that Bumble attributed the fourth quarter success to daters having “pent-up demand” for in-person dates again after a year of lockdowns in the wake of a global pandemic. They expect their numbers to grow as more people get vaccinated and restrictions are lifted.

Dating App Jigsaw Raised Funding

Image: Jigsaw

Dating app Jigsaw has raised $3.7 million in funding after its launch in the U.S., positioning it to be a contender in the industry, according to Tech Crunch. The company is backed by angel investors in the UK and the US.

Jigsaw differentiates itself from other dating apps by slowing down the process for users to accept or reject a match. Sixteen jigsaw puzzle pieces hide a user’s face in their profile photo, with only one small piece revealed as a tease. Over time as a user interacts, the photo emerges as the puzzle pieces disappear, two at a time. After a certain number of interactions, the whole photo is revealed.