Industry

A new study by Pew Research Center found that roughly half of U.S. online daters, or 47 percent of those surveyed, want to see the vaccination status on the profiles of potential matches.

Covid-19 vaccination status has been a divisive issue for people when it comes to dating. Many are eager to move past the pandemic and don’t mind if their dates aren’t vaccinated or if they know up front how they feel about getting the vaccine. But still, 47 percent say it is at least somewhat important that they know upfront before they start engaging with a date, and that they look to see if their matches included vaccination status in their profiles. About a quarter of all respondents said it was very important their dates mention their vaccination status in their profiles.

When drilling down, Pew found that those wanting to see their dates’ vaccination status were more likely to vote Democratic, so the divide was also along political party lines. The research found that respondents who identified as Democrats were more likely to be vaccinated and more likely to say they would only go out with someone who is vaccinated.

BLK dating app has announced a partnership with former First Lady Michelle Obama’s voting initiative “When We All Vote” to help drive people to register and vote, ahead of the midterm elections.

According to Cassius Life, the popular dating app for black singles created an in-app Election Center, which prompts users automatically when they open the app to engage with a choice – “Share Your Voice” or “Shift the Culture.” When users select “Share Your Voice” they are asked to choose an issue that is important to them, such as “universal healthcare” or “affordable housing,” which will be displayed on their profiles to engage other users.

If users prefer not to pick an issue, they can choose “Shift the Culture,” which provides a link to register to vote. BLK also provides push notifications, so users know important dates and deadlines, from the last day to register to vote to when election day is.

Barry Diller, owner of IAC Corporation, has sold off his remaining shares of Match Group for approximately $1.9 billion, according to Global Dating Insights.

The media titan is founder and chairman of InterActiveCorp (IAC), which owned Match Group before it spun off into its own entity. It split from IAC to become a public company in July 2020, which caused a rift with the former owner of its star dating app Tinder, Sean Rad. He and several other Tinder employees sued the company, claiming that their shares were undervalued ahead of the public offering when they were forced out.

Diller’s initial sale of Match stock began in 2021 when he sold his first round despite the company’s impressive growth during the pandemic. But since 2022 began, the stock’s value has fallen 60 percent, in part due to earnings expectations for Tinder falling short the last two quarters. The app’s steady growth is now expected to remain flat through the end of the year.

The share value for dating app conglomerate Match Group was downgraded from buy to hold in mid-September by a Wall Street analyst who projects the company will fall short on revenue goals until the end of the year.

According to Seeking Alpha, Loop Capital Analyst Laura Champine said Tinder remains a “wildcard” on the heels of Renate Nyborg’s exit from the company, the app’s market share losses to Bumble, and “cannibalization” of Tinder by the company’s other star app Hinge. She also lowered her price target from $70 to $60 a share, adding that “we see potential for further misses” going into the next quarter. 

Champine added that CEO Bernard Kim will be able to “bring in exciting talent” from outside the company, which she takes as a promising sign. Still, she said of the company’s star app: "Tinder has not been executing in line with expectations…Match blamed Tinder for its lower outlook overall and said product launches had been poorly executed of late. The brand needs to do a better job attracting new customers," according to Seeking Alpha.

Grindr CEO George Arison

Dating app Grindr, which serves the LGBTQ+ community, named board member George Arison as its new CEO. He is scheduled to launch the company’s IPO this fall with a $2.1 billion valuation.

Arison is scheduled to take the reins on October 19th. He has long worked in the tech industry and been a board member of the company since May, according to NBC News. Prior to his appointment as CEO, he founded the car reseller app Shift Technologies, where he also served as CEO, and before that he headed a taxi-hailing app.

In addition to hiring a new CEO, Grindr also appointed a new CFO, the former CFO of Disney Streaming Service Vanna Krantz, who launched and grew the highly successful Disney+ product. Grindr’s outgoing CEO Jeff Bonforte and CFO Gary Hsueh will move into advisory roles going forward, according to NBC News.

Match Group, which owns Tinder, Hinge and other popular dating apps, has brought a lawsuit against Apple in India, accusing the tech giant of “monopolistic conduct.”

According to an exclusive report from Reuters, the lawsuit follows other filings the company has made against Apple’s App Store practices, since the company takes commission on every in-app sale and doesn’t allow third party payment systems. Match Group filed a complaint in the Netherlands with the country’s regulatory agency which fined Apple almost 50 million euro, until they came to an agreement to revise App Store practices.

Another lawsuit was filed against Apple in India for its App Store practices, arguing that the company “restricts innovation and development” by “enforcing the use of its proprietary in-app purchase system and ‘excessive’ 30 percent commission,” according to Reuter’s review of the filing. That prompted an investigation from the CCI (Competition Commission of India) back in December of 2021.