Match Group was the subject of a class action lawsuit alleging that its dating apps Tinder, Hinge and The League are designed to create addiction in usersthereby generating more profit for the company rather than helping it build relationships.
The plaintiffs allege that Match’s “predatory” business model defrauds those looking for love and fearful of missing out with an algorithm that rewards “compulsive use” of its platforms and encourages them to spend hundreds of dollars a year on Pay subscriptions.
According to the lawsuit filed in federal court in San Francisco Match uses features that “gamify platforms to turn users into captive gamers.” looking for psychological rewards that make Match intentionally difficult.
The six plaintiffs – who live in California, Florida, Georgia and New York – They described it as inconsistent with Match’s advertising sloganthat his applications “are destined to be deleted.”
CEO Bernard Kim told analysts on Jan. 31 that the Dallas-based company has adopted a “fail-fast mentality” to fix broken features and that Tinder and Hinge are using artificial intelligence to improve users’ experiences.
The demand is similar to a series of lawsuits involving Alphabet (parent company of Google), GOOGL.O, Meta Platforms (parent company of Facebook and Instagram), META.O, ByteDance (parent company of TikTok) and Snapchat (parent company of Snap), SNAP.N , be accused consciously designing features to keep millions of kids connected to their platforms.
A July 2022 survey conducted by the Pew Research Center found that one in 10 American adults who are married, living with a partner, or in a stable romantic relationship met their partner through dating sites or apps.
Wednesday’s demand accuses Match of negligence and violations of multiple state consumer protection laws.
The case is Oksayan et al v. MatchGroup Inc, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 24-00888.
What is Tinder and how does it work?
Tinder is a dating app that allows users to meet nearby people based on their gender, age and geographical location preferences. It works through a sliding system: Users see photos of other users and can swipe right if they are interested in meeting them, or to the left if this is not the case. When two users swipe right on each other, a “match” occurs and they are allowed to start a conversation on the platform.
Tinder uses algorithms to display compatible profiles andoffers additional features such as Super Likes (to show special interest) and Tinder Boost (to increase profile visibility). for a limited period of time). It is a popular tool for meeting new people and exploring potential romantic or friendship connections.
With information from Reuters.
ORP