The Meet Group

GROWLr which calls it self "The Bear Social Network" is a dating service for gay singles. Late in April they launched live 1 on 1 video capabilities for both their iOS and Android apps. Since we are in the in the midst of the pandemic this one-on-one video chat feature is now free for all members. This gives GROWLr members the ability to connect with others through live video while still being safe at home and self isolating.

In a 2 week period at the end of April over 50,000 different members have tried out the live video on GROWLr. This averages out to 15,000 members everyday live video streaming with another member. These statistics shows people wanted the ability to do 1 on 1 video calling built into the app since it provides a quick, secure and easier way to meet and socialize with others during the pandemic.

POF is taking virtual dating to the next level with a new initiative called NextDate Social Hours on its POF Live! platform.

NextDate is like virtual speed dating, where users have the opportunity not only to meet new people but also win prizes for participating. Users can go to POF Live! and hit the “go live” button to join while the speed dating hours are in session. They can join NextDate by clicking the heart at the bottom on their screens.

Once a user has joined NextDate, they will get paired with a potential match who has also joined. Then each of you is given some prompts to ask questions and get to know each other while other participants can watch and send hearts and other virtual gifts of encouragement, according to POF’s blog.

Dating app Plenty of Fish (or POF for short) is rolling out a new feature in the coming weeks to users that allows them to livestream video chat with potential matches.

The free livestreaming feature called LIVE! Is POF’s way of encouraging its users to “date from a distance” according to their press release. The company partnered with The Meet Group, Inc., a livestream technology service, to create the feature. 

It’s simple to use. There’s a “LIVE!” icon within the POF app that members can tap which takes you to a home page where you can see the most popular livestreams. You can tune in to a stream or create your own. It’s a way to “stay connected and create a sense of community from the convenience of home,” according to the company’s release.

Rumors began to swirl last December that German broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE’s e-commerce arm, NuCom Group, had expressed preliminary interest in acquiring The Meet Group. It has now been announced that the companies have entered a definitive agreement to proceed with the acquisition. NuCom will pay $6.30 a share in the deal, putting an enterprise value on Meet Group of approximately $500 million.

Based in Pennsylvania, The Meet Group is a maker of mobile apps that focus on live streaming broadcasts and text-based conversations, including MeetMe, Skout,  LOVOO, Tagged and Growlr. NuCom’s holdings include eHarmony, which it acquired in 2018, and the Germany-based dating platform Parship. The Meet Group’s dating brands will be combined with NuCom’s portfolio company Parship Group. The acquisition will help both companies diversify their revenue streams and broaden their combined international footprint.

MeetMe 3D Face Verification

Can you ever know, with complete certainty, that a match you’ve only communicated with online is who they say they are? Although the number of real singles using dating apps continues to grow, so does the number of bots, scammers, catfishers and other imposters of the digital world. The Meet Group hopes to thwart these scourges in 2020 by introducing ways to enhance authenticity across its portfolio of dating apps, starting with 3D face verification.

The idea of using images to verify a user’s identity is nothing new. Current incarnations of this concept often rely on users submitting selfies in certain poses or holding up a piece of paper that displays a specific code. Once these photos are submitted, a human employee compares the selfie to the uploaded profile photo to confirm the owner’s identity. This method is time-consuming and labor-intensive (and, as The Meet Group CEO Geoff Cook noted in a blog post, “not exactly foolproof”). 

A committee from the U.S. House of Representatives is investigating popular dating apps such as Tinder, Bumble and OkCupid following a report that found underage users and sex offenders were using the apps.

According to a report from AP, the House Oversight and Reform subcommittee on economic and consumer policy sent separate letters on Thursday January 30th to Bumble, Grindr, The Meet Group, and Match Group (which owns Tinder and OkCupid among others). The letters asked for information on “users’ ages, procedures for verifying ages, and any complaints about assaults, rape or the use of the services by minors,” according to AP.

The subcommittee is also seeking additional information on privacy policies for each of the apps, and what users see when they are asked to review or accept such policies. Recently, dating apps have also come under fire for third-party sharing of personal data, where user information wouldn’t be protected by the dating app’s own privacy policy.