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Beyond Today

Why does Facebook want you to date?

Beyond Today

BBC

News

4.61.1K Ratings

🗓️ 23 October 2019

⏱️ 21 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Facebook helps connect people, but now it’s on a new mission to get people to fall in love. Facebook users in the US — it will be available in Europe next year — can create a dating profile and curate a list of secret crushes from among your friends. The dating industry is massive — estimates say that it will be worth $12 billion a year by 2020 — but Facebook has said its feature will be free. So, why is the social network getting into the business of love? Could it be after even more data about us? In this episode we speak to The Atlantic’s Kaitlyn Tiffany, who was at the official Facebook Dating launch party in New York. She talks about how it works and whether it could be a success. We also speak to developer Ben Berman, who’s created a game called Monster Match to show exactly how dating app algorithms work. Presenter: Tina Daheley Producers: Alicia Burrell, Harriet Noble and Lucy Hancock Mixed by Nicolas Raufast Editor: John Shields

Transcript

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0:00.0

BBC Sounds, music radio podcasts.

0:06.2

Hello, you're listening to Beyond Today from BBC Radio 4 with me, Tina Dehealy.

0:11.5

A space to ask one big question about one big story.

0:15.0

Today, why does Facebook want you to date?

0:27.0

All right, let's talk about dating.

0:32.0

A little... All right, let's talk about dating.

0:37.0

Alicia Burrell is producing today's episode. Alicia, we are talking about dating apps.

0:40.0

We are Tina.

0:41.0

So the big ones are Tinder,, Bumble, Hinge and Grinder. I've used

0:46.2

Tinder and Bumble in the past and now I've only got a hinge profile. Why is that?

0:50.0

It's just a nice I want to use it's not as threatening.

0:53.5

Okay. You have to be a bit more considered on it.

0:56.5

You have to answer admittedly quite cliched questions.

0:59.5

Like?

1:00.5

Who's your weird crush?

1:03.0

I mean this is personal stuff.

1:07.0

Mine's Tom Watson.

1:08.0

Tom Watson?

1:10.0

Yeah. Okay.

1:11.0

Don Watson!

1:12.0

Oh! No! Okay. Don't Watson! That is not okay.

1:15.0

Yes it is!

...

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