Online Dating and Discovery Association

Today, we are excited to announce that we have officially relaunched as the Online Dating & Discovery Association (ODDA), and will be welcoming social discovery platforms and services to the association. ?We recognise that social discovery is a growing space, and that many online dating companies are already diversifying into this area, and there are many new and exciting startups providing a range of options and ways to connect online. Social discovery services share similar opportunities and challenges to online dating services and we look forward to working as one. https://lnkd.in/e_tdj9vE #socialdiscovery #onlinedating #trustandsafety

A key part of our role as the global voice for the sector, is to raise issues with regulators and policymakers on behalf of our members. We've recently been hearing from members about some of the challenges they've faced in finding payment providers who will work with businesses in our sector. It's a complex issue, but the impact is significant - limited choice and higher costs stifle innovation and growth. That's why we wrote to the Payment Systems Regulator to see what can be done to address these challenges. We know we're not the only sector who has faced this issue, but we want to find a pragmatic way forward. You can read our letter below, or on our website here: https://lnkd.in/eu8GFEVz #onlinedating #paymentproviders #socialdiscovery #innovation #growth

At the end of last year, we asked ourself a question - what if we could come up with a quick and reliable way of identifying scammers trying to gain access to online dating sites - and then build a capability to share that information in real-time with our members? So that's exactly what we did - and at the Date Safe Working Group this week, we shared some early findings of a pilot we've been running with four of our members in collaboration with www.scamalytics.com. The results over a 30 day period are mind-blowing. Using just IP addresses, we've been able to determine the scale of the problem - and these numbers are only the ones that each service agrees are scammers. We've also been able to assess how long it takes for the scammer to appear on another service - information that we didn't know before. Imagine if we could scale this up and add to the data we use to assess whether an IP address or user is a scammer? Well, that's exactly what we're planning on doing and best of all, offering it as a free service to our members. We're taking the fight directly to the scammers by giving our members information that they can act on quickly. #onlinedating #onlinesafety #socialdiscovery #fraud #onlinescams

Have a read of our CEOs February update to find out what we've been up to during the last month ?? #onlinedating #socialdiscovery

Since Trump started his second term, we've been waiting to hear how his administration will approach the dominance of big tech while maintaining innovation. It's obviously early days still, but this great article from The Hill, gives a valuable insight into some of challenges the US faces and suggests a way forward that will protect smaller tech firms. Getting the balance right is key - the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission have an important role to play here and early signs are that they are taking a more pragmatic approach than the Biden administration. #bigtech #innovation #apps #USA https://lnkd.in/ehbrjEbg

Earlier today, Ofcom announced a consultation on draft guidance aimed at making technology firms do more to?improve women and girls’ online safety. Structured around 9 key actions, the guidance is intended to promote a 'safety-by-design' approach that better supports users. Ofcom intend on publishing the final guidance by the end of the year and will also produce an assessment of what tech companies are doing approximately 18 months later to "help women and girls make informed choices about the services they use the services they use." The Online Dating and Discovery Association looks forward to responding to the consultation on behalf of its members. The consultation ends on May 23rd. Further information can be found here: https://lnkd.in/epgNN6VF #Ofcom #OnlineSafetyAct #OnlineSafety #VAWG #OnlineDating #SocialDiscovery #OSA

Next month, we'll be taking a closer look at Europe following the re-election of Ursula von der Leyen as the President of the European Commission. We already know that von der Leyen has an ambitious list of priorities - many of these will impact our sector, including a proposed Digital Fairness Act. But what else can we expect over the next few years from the European Union's Strategic Agenda 2024-2029? Joining us on Wednesday 19th March, will be Bas Batelaan from Public Matters, an independent public affairs consultancy based in Belgium and the Netherlands. We're really looking forward to hearing Bas' insights! You can register for free here: https://lnkd.in/grBNed7r #EuropeanCommission #EuropeanUnion #EU #OnlineDating #SocialDiscovery #Regulation #DigitalFairnessAct

The dominance of Google and Apple has significant implications for App developers who are bound by restrictive terms and conditions that reduce consumer choice and impact growth. In our response to the 'Invitation to Comment' on the recent announcement by the Competition and Markets Authority to investigate whether Google and Apple have 'Strategic Market Status' (in relation to their mobile ecosystems), we highlighted one area that we'd like them to focus on - refunds. In this blog below, our CEO, Simon Newman, explains the issue in greater detail. Later this week, we'll be highlighting another issue that App developers face with refunds - this time through the banks. #CMA #DMCCA #Refunds #AppDevelopers #Apps #OnlineDating #SocialDiscovery

Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced an investigation into Apple and Google's mobile ecosystems. The investigation, under Part 1 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA), will determine whether both tech giants should be designated as having Strategic Market Status (SMS) for their mobile ecosystems. The Online Dating and Discovery Association welcomes the investigations and responded to the CMAs 'Invitation to Comment' last week, which you can read below. A copy is also available on our website: https://lnkd.in/ghCReCME #CMA #DMCCA #DigitalMarkets #OnlineDating #StrategicMarketStatus #Apps

With today being Valentine's Day, it's one of the busiest times of year for our sector. As figures from Ofcom show below, nearly 2 million adults in the UK swiped right on this day last year, with those aged between 18-24 the biggest users. Don't forget to follow our simple 'Date Safe to Date Great' tips which you can find our website here: https://lnkd.in/eYJxWtzg #datesafe #valentinesday #onlinesafety #onlinedating