Facebook has yet to give its last word on the privacy and security issue that faced CEO Mark Zuckerberg last month. But now the social platform is hoping that people will trust it not only with their data but also with their love lives.
Facebook recently revealed, at its annual F8 developer conference, that it will be adding a dating feature to its mobile app. Zuckerberg noticed that more than 200 million users on Facebook list themselves as single, so why not take advantage of that?
After competing with every existing social media platform, Facebook is now moving into the dating world, claiming that its service will help build relationships rather than just casual dating:
‘This is going to be for building real, long-term relationships – not just for hookups,’ Zuckerberg says.
This new dating feature will be useful if you’re looking for your other half but don’t want your circle to know about it because Zuckerberg promises that your Facebook friends won’t see your dating profile.
‘We’ve designed this with privacy and safety in mind from the beginning. Your friends aren’t going to see your profile, and you’re only going to be suggested to people who aren’t your friends. People already use Facebook to meet new people, and we want to make that experience better,’ Zuckerberg explains.
Users will create a dating profile that is separate from their Facebook profile and matches will be suggested based on things in common, mate preferences and mutual friends.
We can all agree that Facebook is promising a high-quality experience, but given the recent privacy scandals, is it really ready to compete with not only Tinder but also match.com and OKCupid? Will Facebook’s entry weaken or strengthen its future rivals presence?
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