Features

Dating app Tinder has confirmed it is developing a new interactive feature called Swipe Party, enabling others to virtually join a user as they sort through profiles.

Swipe Party was discovered by Dutch website GratisDatingTips, who spotted new lines of code added to the app’s latest update. Citing further proof of the new feature, the site also discovered that a developer at Tinder had listed Swipe Party as his main development project, further tipping off news outlets like Tech Crunch to what was underway. Tech Crunch confirmed with Tinder that this feature is in development.

There aren’t many details yet about how Swipe Party will work, but Tech Crunch noted that it does involve a user inviting friends to join and enabling the microphone and video functions on the app. The idea is that multiple users can observe as a user looks at profiles, and advise whether to swipe left or right, making choosing a match a group effort.

Gay dating apps are leading the way when it comes to encouraging users to disclose their STI status when they use dating apps, according to public health experts. 

Health disclosures on dating apps have taken on new importance since the pandemic took hold, with more users asking potential matches about their vaccination and infection status before agreeing to meet in person. Because of the recent urgency and importance in keeping each other safe from Covid-19, and the rising cases of STIs, mainstream dating apps like Tinder and Bumble are now looking for effective ways of encouraging users to disclose their sexual health status, too. 

Gay dating apps have long been ahead of the curve on this, encouraging users to disclose their STI status up front in the name of public health, according to the National Post.

Online dating can be time consuming, but it can also lead to burnout when matches are looking for different things, according to a new study by dating app Badoo.

The dating app surveyed its users and found that 78 percent can relate to experiencing burnout from dating, and that it can often feel like a chore because of mismatched intentions about what they are looking for. Dating fatigue happens a lot when dates aren’t honest about what they want from a romantic connection, according to Metro UK.

In addition to the feeling of wasted time spent dating people who aren’t so compatible, there’s also a cost - daters spend roughly 285 GBP per year on what are ultimately failed dates, and on average, daters have about six bad dates per year.

Tinder has debuted a slew of new features, and the latest is Music Mode, which automatically plays a user’s chosen “anthem” in their profiles, putting music preferences front and center to attract potential matches.

According to Tech Crunch, the new feature will play your chosen song in a 30-second loop while people scan your profile. Music Mode integrates with Spotify, so when members link to their Spotify accounts and set their anthems, they will be able to access Music Mode.

The feature will be found via the company’s new Explore section which offers a more interactive dating app experience. This is where users can search people according to interests and strike up conversations immediately, do a round of virtual speed dating or attend a virtual event. Tinder is focusing on this section of the app for younger daters who want a more interesting, immersive experience on dating platforms.

Tinder just debuted a new ad campaign in time for the holidays, one of the busiest times of the year for dating app users. The company hired creative agency Mischief@NoFixedAddress to appeal to young Gen Z daters, its target audience.

According to The Drum, the new ad tagline is “you’re not for everyone,” and highlights in a funny way some unusual passions of singles that not everyone will find endearing. The ad is meant to assure its users that no matter how unique their interests are, there will always be someone who’s into the same things.

The first ad features a woman doing astral projection from her living room floor surrounded by candles who loses her zen focus when a roommate wanders in.

Match Group’s dating app Match will offer a hand-picked matchmaking service to app users for $4.99 per week, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

The company hired and trained 50 dating coaches who will be selecting two matches per week for participating users. However, the Journal notes that the matchmakers will be choosing matches from the same dating pool that the algorithm already provides, and will filter choices based on members’ answers to four basic questions, such as what a person would change about their dating life and what kind of person they gravitate towards.

The new service is being touted as a human matchmaking offering, aiming to disrupt the traditional matchmaking industry where experts charge thousands of dollars to hand pick potential matches for their clients and to better prepare them for dating. Match is offering a bit of human curation for far less money (but without all the handholding), which could have an impact.