COURTLAND BROOKS - Last year, we mentioned 281 internet dating industry brands in 1,066 posts. Although Match Group and its brands are clearly dominating this list, Bumble takes first place this time, even though only by one post. Here is the full list of companies with the most press coverage for last year.
1. Bumble (131 posts in 2021)
Bumble going public last year was by far the company's most important news which got extensive press coverage in the first two months of 2021 and the financial results of the company and stock price development were often covered and commented on by the press. Bumble BFF will be relaunched as a metaverse platform. Bumble partnered with Snapchat in May, introduced Night In virtual dating feature, and gave its exhausted employees an extra week off in June. It opened a NY restaurant and an online shop offering its own product line in December. Bumble also unveiled a new profile design and revamped its matchmaking algorithm at the end of last year.
2. Tinder (130 posts)
Tinder also announced its plan to bet on metaverse technologies and launched the virtual currency in October. The app patented Swipe Night in February and the series eventually returned in November. Tinder partnered with Lyft in March, with VisithHealth to offer therapy sessions in June, and with Spotify in December. Tinder announced it would offer background checks on would-to-be dates in March and the launch of Safety Center in India in August. The app launched Vibes, a compatibility check feature and "Are You Sure" to stop harmful messages in May, video profiles to European users in September, and a "Plus One" feature to help users find a wedding date in October. Tinder got a new CEO in September and a new CMO in April.
3. Match Group (96 posts)
Match Group news often overlaps with those covering its brands. But here are a few from their category: Match bought South Korean company Hyperconnect in February. This huge deal got significant press coverage. So did the much-discussed lawsuit launched by former Tinder execs, which was finally settled in December. It was the biggest, but not the only one against Match last year. On the other hand, Match Group accused smaller rival Muzmatch of copying Tinder in February (this one was filed in the US). Match also unveiled their plans for a dating metaverse last year. It made the list of top 100 companies to work for. The company took a stand against the recently approved Texas abortion law. And of course, each quarter, Match Group's financial results are highly anticipated and commented on in the press.
4. OkCupid (43 posts)
OkCupid got a lot of mentions in the press, often quoting its data center surveys. It got new language versions - German and Turkish. Its ad campaigns got solid coverage in the press. In February, OkCupid partnered with TuneIn to launch exclusive dating-themed music stations.
5. Hinge (42 posts)
Hinge launched a Video Prompts feature in April and added Voice Prompts in October. Especially the latter one got extensive press coverage. In June, Hinge partnered with Uber to help single dog owners and in March with Uncommon Goods to create a virtual date night kit. In April, Hinge users were offered £100 towards their second date. In August, Hinge donated $50k to help save lesbian bars.
6.-7. Match.com (35 posts)
Match announced a rebrand to fit its millennial users better in February. In August, Match introduced features addressing user complaints such as how much time it takes to find a relevant match and ghosting. In November, human matchmaking was added as a new service. In December, Match partnered with Candace Bushnell who will oversee the Expert Picks feature in 2022.
6.-7. Grindr (35 posts)
Grindr was another company with solid press coverage last year, but in their case, it was quite often negative and the main topic was security issues, like the $7.16M fine Grindr received over a privacy breach in Norway in February. The app announced new privacy features for its users in September. The company expanded LGBTQ health care access for its employees last year. And it also produced its first original content series called Bridesman.
8. The Meet Group (31 posts)
TMG partnered with RAINN to enhance dating safety in February and with Spectrum Labs to improve live streaming moderation in July. Spark Networks, MocoSpace and Hornet were added to the growing list of live streaming video partners. TMG's parent company ParshipMeet Group got new co-CEOs last year and the plan for an IPO was announced.
9. Blued (23 posts)
Blued launched the Voice Chat Room function in February. HeHealth, a health service by BlueCity, the parent company of Blued, obtained an internet hospital license in April. Ma Baoli, the founder and CEO of Blued was often interviewed by the press last year. In August, Blued introduced a series of new features including prohibiting screenshots and screen recordings, to protect user identity and privacy. In July, BlueCity was hit by a lawsuit over share price drops.
10. Spark Networks (22 posts)
Things were looking good financially for Spark at the beginning of the last year. In March, they partnered with The Meet Group to deliver live streaming video to their users. That allowed Zoosk to launch Zoosk Live! in July.
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