Relationships

We’ve all seen a rom-com meet-cute. A soon-to-be couple accidentally touches hands while reaching for the same item at a grocery store. Or ends up covered in coffee when one person literally runs into the other on their walk into work. Or gets into an argument during a minor case of road rage. The best meet-cutes in movies happen under dubious circumstances, often at the most awkward or embarrassing moments of the characters lives.

In real life, most of us would prefer to meet our future partners under better conditions, and thanks to online dating, these love-at-first-site meetings are becoming a thing of the past. According to an article published by Stanford University in 2019, matchmaking is now done primarily by algorithms. Today’s heterosexual singles are more likely to meet a romantic partner online than through personal connections. But is that actually what we want?

Image: OkCupid

OkCupid launched a new provocative ad campaign called “Ask Yourself,” which focuses on questions that can serve as deal-breakers to younger daters. The campaign doesn’t shy away from getting political, since the majority of its customers are most interested in partners that align with them politically.

The campaign includes illustrated outdoor posters that feature the most popular topics discussed among OkCupid users. For example one poster states: “It’s OK not to date a man who won’t vote for a woman” and “It’s OK to choose to only date someone who’s pro-choice.” It also features animations and a series of polls for Instagram stories, gauging people’s opinions on a wide range of topics from light to serious - such as thoughts on body hair, climate change, and Trump’s impeachment.

Bond Touch Bracelets

Online dating has given us wonderful things and terrible things, and some things that are wonderful and terrible at the same time. It allows us to connect with potential partners all over the world (wonderful), but it also opens us to the possibility of falling in love with a perfect match who lives hours, miles or even oceans away (terrible). Despite what they say about absence and the heart growing fonder, and the ever-expanding number of communication tools that claim to bring us closer, long-distance relationships are hard.

Entrepreneurs are eager to find ways to help couples stay connected no matter where they are in the world. Bond Touch bracelets use haptic technology to let you and your dearest physically feel each other, even when you’re apart. When you touch your bracelet, your partner’s matching bracelet vibrates and lights up in the color of your choice, letting them know they’re on your mind. Bond Touch bracelets are waterproof up to three feet, with a battery life of up to four days and a variety of accessory bands that can be swapped to customize your style.

Boomers are looking for love and increasingly turning to dating apps to do it. But Tinder isn’t necessarily what they are looking for.

BBC reported that the demographics with the biggest growth for dating app usage are 18-24-year-olds and those over 50. Between 2013 and 2015 when Tinder began to take off, online dating tripled for the younger demographic and doubled for those aged 55-64, according to Pew Research Center.

However, older daters were finding obstacles in using popular apps like Tinder that continue to cater to young users. For example, when Tinder launched its premium paid service, the company charged significantly more for older users, which caused an outcry. Some dating apps don’t let people over 50 sign up at all, so boomers were either having to lie about their ages or look for another platform. 

Image: Pipsay

Four months after Facebook Dating’s launch, consumer insights platform Piplsay has released a report on the long-awaited feature. Piplsay polled 21,242 Americans to find out how successful Facebook’s foray into online dating has been so far. The short answer: it’s complicated.

Dating was introduced at Facebook’s annual F8 developers’ conference in 2018. After initially launching in a handful of countries abroad, the service finally made its US debut in September 2019. News outlets and dating industry competitors were quick to comment on the launch in exhaustive detail, but it appears that Facebook’s clout and the media’s seemingly-infinite coverage have not been enough to catapult Dating into the industry’s upper echelon.

It’s been decades since The Dating Game and The Newlywed Game were primetime hits, but if a new subscription streaming service has its way, the dating show genre is about to enter a renaissance. Quibi's upcoming series The Hot Drop will take an interactive approach to reality dating entertainment by giving viewers the power to decide who should and shouldn't live happily ever after. ITV America’s Sirens Media and ITV Studios Entertainment will produce.

Each week, The Hot Drop will share a profile of an eligible single on the Quibi app. Interested viewers will respond by submitting videos to apply for the opportunity to be a contestant and date the single of the week. On Wednesdays, the series will name the top three candidates and let viewers vote to choose who goes on the adventure. The candidate with the most votes will meet the featured single on Friday and go on an over-the-top first date while the audience watches in the Quibi app. One single’s journey ends when they decide at the end of the week if they want to continue dating their match “off the app” or remain single.