Ghosting on dating apps is annoying. Match wants to end it

Change is underway at Match Group, the parent company of most of the dating sites you’ve considered (Hinge, Tinder, OkCupid, PlentyOfFish, Pairs, OurTime, Meetic). Change is always underway at the company, which is known for constantly tinkering with algorithms and match methods in ways that drive users bananas.

But lately its eponymous service, Match, has been trying to end a dating rite of passage: ghosting.

Now when chats stall, Match users will receive nudges to continue the conversation, or a reminder to politely beg off. One new prompts says, “We don’t believe in leaving people hanging. So let’s keep things moving.” Users can either click on conversation suggestions or “unmatch,” which sends the other user a polite message.

Match will also release “Matched By Us,” a once-a-week match where both users can see each other and don’t need to await mutual “likes.” This is presumably aimed the many users, often male, who send out dozens of messages to get one mutual pairing.

Match is also doubling down on attracting daters of a certain age. Match’s new campaign, called “Adults Date Better,” proclaims that “young love was great, but dating as a fully formed emotionally mature human? Man, that’s on a whole other level.”

Big picture: The pandemic has expedited Match’s push into video interactions that allow users to ascertain chemistry without stepping out into the real world. Match Group acquired Korean social media company Hyperconnect for $1.7 billion this year, and says it will integrate Hyperconnect’s technology into its dating apps with video chat and online group mixers. As CEO Shar Dubey recently told investors, “Our ultimate vision here is for people to never have to go on a bad first date again.”