Facebook Is Starting A Dating App And Honestly, Can You Not?
What could possibly go wrong?
Fresh off the back of allowing Cambridge Analytica to take all our data, Facebook has decided its next best move is to launch a dating app.
Because getting even more personal data from people is gonna go down a treat right now.
Facebook broke the news at its annual developer conference today.
“There are 200 million people on Facebook who list themselves as single. So clearly there’s something to do here,” he told the crowd.
Zuckerberg said the service will aim to help people find “real long-term relationships – not just hookups”. Personally, I’m not sure that I want my dating app to immediately deliver me into a long term relationship, but Facebook is gonna do what it wants.
The dating app hasn’t been released yet, so we don’t know heaps about it, but Facebook is promising that it will be safe and private. It sounds like it will be part of Facebook itself, but also separate from the other stuff you do on the platform. Your friends, for instance, won’t be able to see your dating profile, and won’t come up as potential matches. Oh, and it will apparently just be called “Dating”.
Facebook dating already exists it’s called Instagram direct message
— Joe Bernstein (@Bernstein) May 1, 2018
Still, some people aren’t too convinced, in particular the people behind existing dating apps, the stocks of which dropped pretty steeply following Facebook’s announcement.
Mandy Ginsberg, CEO of Tinder’s parent company Match Group, said “we’re surprised at the timing given the amount of personal and sensitive data that comes with this territory”, which is pretty salty. Another CEO said something about Facebook’s app being great for the US’s relationship with Russia.
Facebook gonna marry you to the Russian spambot of your dreams ? https://t.co/BKjutvPfbf
— Christopher Wylie (@chrisinsilico) 1 May 2018
BREAKING: Mark Zuckerberg says that Facebook will now offer a dating service. I didn't know that there was such a demand for Russian mail order bots. #f82018
— Ed Krassenstein ? (@EdKrassen) May 1, 2018
We’d say we’ll keep you posted on when the app comes out, but if you’re using Facebook we doubt you’ll be able to miss it.