Safety

The Meet Group, the Pennsylvania-based parent to several dating and social networking apps, unveiled two new sets of features for its flagship dating and livestreaming platform, MeetMe.

The first updates focus on making MeetMe a safer, more welcoming and more inclusive space. The iOS and Android versions of the app now have a more prominent Report Abuse button - the largest, according to CEO Geoff Cook, seen in any major livestreaming app so far. When a user taps the button, a screengrab is automatically taken and sent to the company’s moderation team. The moderators can immediately review both the screengrab and the active livestream in order to take appropriate action.

Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd spoke out against parent company Badoo in the wake of allegations made by more than a dozen employees that it promoted a toxic work culture, especially for women.

An exclusive by Forbes revealed allegations made by thirteen former Badoo employees who worked at the company’s London headquarters, citing a sexist office culture with drug-fueled parties, employees naming engineering updates after porn stars, and a widely circulated video of an employee receiving oral sex from a prostitute.

Forbes also said the employees specifically named Badoo owner Andrey Andreev, who also owns a majority stake in Bumble, of making derogatory comments around race and physical appearance.

Leading the way for major dating apps, Bumble launched an exciting new feature for its platform: in-app video and voice calls. It will soon be available in Bumble Bizz, Bumble BFF and its signature dating app.

The new feature is similar to Facetime, in that you can voice or video call a match directly from within the Bumble app. The ability to make an in-app call will be available only once a match has been made, according to Tech Crunch. In other words, there must be a double opt-in so users won’t be getting unsolicited calls from random users.

In late June, a Massachusetts man pleaded guilty to sending threatening letters to OkCupid’s headquarters in Dallas, Texas, in retaliation for banning him from the dating app.

According to a report in The New York Post, Liam MacLeod was banned from the app for repeatedly violating the terms of service back in 2017. The 47 year-old man then began sending threatening letters, some with a “blood-like substance” according to The Post, and others with a “suspicious white powder.” All of the mailings were addressed to OkCupid’s Chief Executive Officer.

Dating app Lumen is coming out strong for the over 50 online dating market. It has already achieved one million downloads in just eight months (Android and iOS). In June, the company announced the launch of an international campaign dubbed “50 is just the start,” partnering with over-50 dance group The Silver Classix Crew in its ads.

The dance group performs in costumes that hide their identities, so they could be mistaken for much younger dancers. The end of the ad has them removing their masks to reveal performers with gray hair and other signs of age, meant to make viewers question their preconceptions of what “older” means. The ad will air in various global markets on both broadcast and digital platforms like Comcast and Hulu, according to website Campaign US.

Russia is requiring 175 companies to share user data with its government law enforcement and intelligence services, including with FSB, the successor of the KGB spy agency. Listed among the companies was popular dating app Tinder.

Russia’s regulatory agency also required the dating app to store six months’ worth of user data on Russian servers, including direct messages, photos and videos. Three other dating apps, Mamba, Wamba and Badoo, currently share user information with Russian government officials, according to CNN.