Badoo announced earlier this year it was introducing a new video chat feature, to allow potential couples to meet before they go on a date.
With issues such as catfishing on the internet, it was a good initiative to allow users to ‘meet’ safely before an official meeting in public.
However, to completely ditch the traditional dating app swiping feature in favour of a video is a different kettle of fish.
It’s interesting to see dating apps move away from the shallow reputation they’ve developed. Other apps like Huggle, which was recently acquired by Badoo, have never included the swiping feature. Instead, Huggle users are matched on their combined interests, based on places they’ve tagged themselves in on social media.
Stina Sanders, one of Huggle’s co-founders, told the Standard: “I liked the idea of connecting through places. That’s how you meet someone normally, the old-school dating where you would meet someone in a nightclub or through a friend at the pub.
“We realised no one was doing this [with dating apps].”
Even more than the dating aspect, Badoo Live demonstrates the company’s attempts to move more into the social media scene.
Though the feature is currently in testing phases, one Badoo user live-streamed a friend’s wedding for 13 hours using Badoo Live.
This is stepping on the toes of other social media apps like Facebook and Instagram which offer live-streaming options.
Are the dating apps growing up and becoming more social? Facebook had better watch out.
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