Match Group has revealed that it is dialling down Tinder’s metaverse dating goals and cancelling plans to create an in-app Tinder Coins currency, after a dismal set of revenues for the previous quarter. Tinder CEO Renate Nyborg, who became the dating app’s first female CEO only last September, will also be stepping down, according to Match Group CEO Bernard Kim. Kim was appointed CEO just two months ago.
Nyborg previously laid forth lofty aspirations for Tinder’s take on the metaverse (dubbed the “Tinderverse” by Nyborg). Tinder purchased Hyperconnect, a firm focused on video, AI, and augmented reality technologies, last year, and Nyborg subsequently mentioned their avatar-based “Single Town” experience as a way Tinder’s users could one day be able to meet and engage with one another in virtual locations.
Kim, on the other hand, claims to have urged Hyperconnect to cut down. “Given the ambiguity regarding the eventual outlines of the metaverse and what will or will not function, as well as the more demanding operating environment,” Kim said. “We will continue to carefully assess this market, and we will consider going ahead when we have greater clarity on the broader potential and believe we have a service that is well-positioned to succeed.”
Match Group highlighted the Hyperconnect purchase as leading to a $10 million operating loss in the second quarter of 2022, down from a $210 million operating profit in the same period the previous year.
Tinder Coins, the in-app currency Tinder believed would promote increased spending on the site, also received negative news. Tinder planned to provide coins as an incentive for users being active on the site and updating their profiles, but they would also be available for purchase directly. They would subsequently be accepted as payment for Tinder premium features such as Super Likes. The function has been soft-launched in a few regions across the globe as of February of this year.
However, Kim now claims that the firm is reconsidering its Tinder Coins intentions. “After witnessing mixed results from testing Tinder Coins, we’ve chosen to take a step back and re-examine that programme so that it can contribute to Tinder’s income more efficiently,” he stated in the earnings announcement. The business earlier said that the functionality will be widely available in the third quarter of this year.
