facebook
linkedin
twitter
About Us
  • BFSI
  • Energy
  • Infocom
  • Mining
  • Venture
  • Industry
  • Travel
  • Civic
  • Food, Health, Ag
  • Real Estate
  • Responsibility
  • Economy
  • Law & Justice
  • Interview
  • Analysis

Why Facebook Debuted Its New Dating Service in Colombia

Posted On September 25, 2018
By : Jared Wade
Comment: Off
Tag: Dating, Digital, facebook, Facebook Dating, Facebook Messenger, mobile, Nathan Sharp, smartphone, Social Networks, WhatsApp

Facebook is getting into the dating game. It launched the pilot of its new Facebook Dating service last week in Colombia, and the match-making platform will remain exclusive to the Andean nation for the time being.

The objective of the Menlo Park, California-based company’s service mimics that of the other popular dating sites that have emerged over the past two decades, meaning that anyone familiar with the likes of OK Cupid, Tinder, and Match will be treading on familiar ground.

Specifically, people on the network can opt-in to Facebook Dating and be presented with “suggested matches” based upon common interests. These suggestions will not include “current Facebook friends” as part of the company’s desire to keep its platform dating — a sensitive and private matter for many people — fenced off from its core offering. Messages sent to suggested matches will also appear separately from the company’s traditional messaging service.

The company says it sees the service, which was announced earlier this year and already beta-tested internally, as a “dedicated experience” on Facebook that will make it “easier to meet and start conversations with people who share your interests.”

Part of the emphasis is also on cultivating long-term relationships, according to an exclusive report from Tech Crunch, something the company thinks it can do well because users inherently understand that any match is actually a real person with a full profile, not just a cute photo.

Ultimately, with so many single people out there across the globe, dating was just a natural progression for a social network that has continually expanded its scope into areas including sports broadcasting, e-commerce, news distribution partnerships, and digital payments.

“More than 200 million people have listed themselves as single in their relationship status on Facebook,” said Nathan Sharp, product manager for Facebook Dating. “We view this as an incredible opportunity to continue helping people build relationships in meaningful ways on Facebook.”

Colombia doesn’t have 200 million people, but it is the third-largest country in a region that predominately speaks Spanish, the most-used language on earth after Mandarin.

So with almost 50 million people living in Colombia, the country is capable of providing a lot of data quite quickly. Its large metro areas — Bogotá has more than eight million residents, while Medellín and Cali each have more than two million — also mean that a lot of mingling will be possible in a short time.

Facebook also says it chose Colombia due to the fact that its people are tech-savvy and highly social. Some 30 million people in the country visit Facebook each month, per company figures, and the company’s WhatsApp messaging app is similarly widespread.

Results of a Euromonitor International study released in 2017 found that roughly 80% of Latin American “digital consumers” reported visiting a social media site everyday. This was well above the 65% figure from the rest of the regions of the world studied by Euromonitor.

“Social media is more intertwined in the daily lives of Latin American consumers than digital consumers elsewhere,” says Michelle Evans of Euromonitor, writing last year about the results for Forbes. “In fact, this channel is emerging as a more important avenue for reaching consumers than even direct email marketing depending on the device.”

Given all the privacy concerns swirling around social media, and specifically Facebook, in recent years, such concerns have been widespread since the company announced its plans to foray into the dating world. Euromonitor found that worry about these issues is generally lower in some Latin American countries, including Colombia, but the global network still is working hard to assuage those fears.

It has continually highlighted that the activity of users of the service will never appear on their actual Facebook profile page or news feed, for example. Users also have full control over who can see their Facebook Dating profile and anyone who they have blocked will never be able to see their page.

“Enhanced privacy controls” are intended to make this even more customizable so that individual people can be be excluded from ever seeing the dating profile including the ability to “report or block someone if at any point you feel uncomfortable,” says Facebook.

(Phone images via Facebook)

DON'T MISS OUT: The only English-language Colombia news that's strictly business, markets, & investment!
Join global executives & investors by subscribing to our FREE weekly updates
I agree to have my personal information transferred to MailChimp ( more information ) DISCLAIMER: Protección de Datos Personales Artículo 15 de la Constitución Política de Colombia, ley 1581 de 2012 y decreto 1377 de 2013.
We will never spam you or share your email address ¡Nunca Jamás!

Share the news!

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Print
  • WhatsApp
  • LinkedIn
  • Skype

Related

Share your thoughts:

comments

About the Author
Jared Wade is editor in chief of Finance Colombia. He is a Bogotá-based journalist with 15 years of experience covering topics including business, financial services, Latin America, and sports. Email him at jared.wade(at) financecolombia.com or follow him on Twitter at @Jared_Wade.
  • google-share
Previous Story

Viva Air Launches ‘Viva Air Labs’ to Pursue Innovation in Latin American Aviation Industry

Next Story

Bogotá Startup Hometuls Wins Colombian Seedstars Competition, Will Head to Switzerland to Compete for $1 Million USD in Funding

Related Posts

Wingo Catalina Bretón Copa Holdings Copa Airline Colombia Semana Santa Bogota El Dorado International Airport
0

Copa’s Wingo Low-Cost Airline Seeks To Improve Passenger Service

Posted On April 5, 2022
, By Loren Moss
0

Colombian Government Fines Wireless Telco Avantel $8.8 Billion Pesos For 4G Coverage Failures

Posted On September 21, 2021
, By Loren Moss
Sophia the Robot speaks on stage during Andicom 2018 in Cartagena, Colombia. (Photo credit: Jared Wade)
0

Andicom, Colombia’s Largest ICT Event Returns To Cartagena Convention Center In November

Posted On September 21, 2021
, By Loren Moss




Search

RECENT

POPULAR

COMMENTS

The World’s 50 Best Restaurants today reveals Leonor Espinosa of Leo, Bogotá, as the 2022 winner of The World’s Best Female Chef Award, sponsored by Nude Glass

Colombian Leonor Espinosa Named "World's Best Female Chef"

Posted On May 18, 2022
Grand Bahamas photo © Loren Moss

Bahamas Seeks Air Connectivity With Colombia

Posted On May 18, 2022
Roberto Kriete, avianca's main shareholder and chairman of the Board of Directors.

Shareholders Of Viva, Avianca & Gol Announce The Creation Of Abra Group To Dominate South American Skies

Posted On May 11, 2022
Colombia’s attorney general charged Russian national Sergein Vagin and six other people

Alleged Russian Spy Charged…With Running A Gambling Mafia

Posted On April 12, 2022

Viva Launches Nonstop Routes To Buenos Aires, Argentina From Medellín & Bogotá, Colombia

Posted On April 12, 2022

Romanian Cybercriminal Mihai Ionut Paunescu Captured In Colombia

Posted On June 29, 2021
Photo montage courtesy EPM

EPM’s Board of Directors Resign En Masse, Creating Crisis For Mayor Daniel Quintero

Posted On August 17, 2020

Court Blocks Colombia’s $370 Million USD Emergency Loan To Bankrupt Avianca Airlines

Posted On September 12, 2020

Deadly Riots & Protests Against Police Brutality Break Out Across Colombia

Posted On September 10, 2020

AVIANCA IS BANKRUPT

Posted On May 10, 2020

[…] damn what she said. She and...

Posted On April 4, 2022

[…] by short sellers seeking to...

Posted On March 22, 2022

[…] no longer travel freely...

Posted On March 8, 2022

[…] Duque’s administration will...

Posted On March 8, 2022

[…] See also: 13 Police Injured In...

Posted On March 3, 2022

Watch This!

Consider Advertising With Us

Click here to visit Expat Group's English site

Subscribe Free

don't forget to include "http://"
* = required field
Your Background / Function








unsubscribe from list

RECENT

POPULAR

COMMENTS

The World’s 50 Best Restaurants today reveals Leonor Espinosa of Leo, Bogotá, as the 2022 winner of The World’s Best Female Chef Award, sponsored by Nude Glass

Colombian Leonor Espinosa Named "World's Best Female Chef"

Posted On May 18, 2022
Grand Bahamas photo © Loren Moss

Bahamas Seeks Air Connectivity With Colombia

Posted On May 18, 2022
Roberto Kriete, avianca's main shareholder and chairman of the Board of Directors.

Shareholders Of Viva, Avianca & Gol Announce The Creation Of Abra Group To Dominate South American Skies

Posted On May 11, 2022

Romanian Cybercriminal Mihai Ionut Paunescu Captured In Colombia

Posted On June 29, 2021
Photo montage courtesy EPM

EPM’s Board of Directors Resign En Masse, Creating Crisis For Mayor Daniel Quintero

Posted On August 17, 2020

Deadly Riots & Protests Against Police Brutality Break Out Across Colombia

Posted On September 10, 2020

[…] damn what she said. She and...

Posted On April 4, 2022

[…] by short sellers seeking to...

Posted On March 22, 2022

[…] no longer travel freely...

Posted On March 8, 2022

Watch This!

Contact Us (Click the image):

Pages

  • About Us
  • Colombia Events, Conferences, Festivals and Important Dates
  • Contact Us
  • main
  • Media Partnerships
  • Privacy Policy
  • Search Results
  • Whatsapp test page
Copyright 2014-2020 Finance Colombia All Rights Reserved. We may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.
Posting....
WhatsApp us