India’s mobile payments regulator is likely to extend the deadline for imposing market share caps on the popular UPI payments rail by one to two years, sources familiar with the matter told TechCrunch. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), a special unit of the Reserve Bank of India, plans to extend the deadline for […]
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It’s not uncommon for people to screenshot dating profiles and send them to their friends and loved ones, either to get feedback or to let them know who they’re seeing that weekend. Now, Tinder users are able to share their date plans directly from the app thanks to a new feature called “Share My Date.”
Tinder announced Monday that users will now be able to send a link that includes details about the upcoming date, including the match’s name, meeting location, date, and time. There’s also an option to type a note at the bottom. Links can be sent up to 30 days prior to the day of the date and are editable, so users can update the details whenever they want.
“Share My Date” links are viewable for every recipient, including non-Tinder users. Friends with a Tinder account can view the match’s full profile, but they can’t interact with it, including messaging the match. Non-users see a limited version of the profile in their browser, only being able to see the match’s photos, name, and age, a Tinder spokesperson explained to TechCrunch.
Like Tinder’s “Matchmaker” feature, which lets users’ friends suggest potential matches, the “Share My Date” link expires after a certain period. This is to discourage people from sharing on social media, the spokesperson told us.
The new feature was inspired by Tinder user data — 51% of singles under 30 let their friends know the details of their dates beforehand.
“At Tinder, we continue to release new features that aim to create a fun, safe, and respectful experience for all,” Tinder CMO Melissa Hobley said in a statement. “Discussing plans with friends and family is a time-honored dating ritual. Share My Date streamlines this basic info-sharing so singles can jump right to the exciting part, from figuring out what to wear to prepping conversation topics.”
In the coming months, the new feature will roll out across the U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, India, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Brazil, Singapore, Switzerland, Mexico, Korea, Vietnam, and Thailand.
The launch of “Share My Date” comes at a time when dating apps are experiencing slow growth. As of last January, there were only about 12.7 million installs in the U.S., growth of 2.38% compared to the almost 16% growth in the year prior. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Tinder’s total number of paying customers dropped by 8% year over year to 10 million.
Parent company Match Group — which owns Tinder, Match, Hinge, OkCupid, PlentyOfFish, and others — is set to report its Q1 2024 earnings on Wednesday, May 8.
Meta announced on Tuesday it’s rolling out the ability for Messenger users to create shared albums in chats, send photos in high-definition, and share larger files up to 100MB in size. With these new features, Messenger is targeting people who tend to create shared albums or share HD images via services like Google Drive.
Up until now, users have only been able to see a list of photos shared in a specific Messenger chat and couldn’t group or organize them in any way. Now users can create albums of photos and videos in group chats, whether it’s to organize photos of a recent spring break or grandma’s 80th birthday celebration. To create an album in a group chat, you need to select multiple photos from your chat composer and then tap “create album.” You can also create an album by long-pressing a photo in a chat. If you want to add photos to an existing album, you can tap the “Add to album” option.
Everyone in a chat can view, add, delete, and download pictures and videos in an album. You can locate an album by tapping the “Media” button in a chat.
The launch of shared albums is likely to be a welcome addition for users, as the capability isn’t available on Meta’s other messaging services, WhatsApp and Instagram DMs.
Image Credits: Messenger
As for the new HD photo-sharing capability, users can now toggle an “HD” option after selecting an image from the chat composer. You can tap on additional photos to send multiple in HD. The launch of the new feature follows Meta’s rollout of support for HD photos on WhatsApp back in September 2023.
In addition, Messenger is offering an alternative to email for sending large files, as it’s now letting users send Word, PDF, Excel, and zip files directly in chats. Users can do so by tapping the + button in a chat and then selecting a file on their device.
Also new today is the launch of an option for users to connect with others by scanning a QR code, removing the need to type out someone’s name or number to start chatting with them on the app.
The new features are rolling out on mobile to all Messenger users.
YouTube is launching a version of Shorts that’s only for members, allowing creators to share short-form videos exclusively with their paying viewers. The new feature gives paying subscribers access to additional content, on top of their current membership perks, which include things like custom emojis, badges, livestreams and more.
Members Only Shorts on YouTube could entice viewers to sign up for a paid membership. YouTube says creators can use the new option to share a special announcement, product drop or limited-time deal. Creators can use Members Only Shorts for Q&As, behind-the-scenes looks or clips of upcoming content.
The launch comes as TikTok recently opened up its subscription offering to more creators. Earlier this month, TikTok announced that its LIVE Subscription monetization tool is being renamed to “Subscription” and is soon expanding to non-LIVE creators. The expansion means regular creators will be able to post exclusive videos that only paying subscribers can view.
After uploading a Short, creators can choose to make it available only to their subscribers by selecting the new “members only” option under the “visibility” section. Creators can also choose to set an existing Short as members only. Plus, creators have the option to schedule their Short to go from members only to public in order to give their subscribers early access to content before it becomes available to everyone else.
The Google-owned company encourages creators to keep these Shorts casual and more organic than their public content, likely to make subscribers feel like they have a more intimate look into the creator’s life and activities.
Members will see the exclusive short-form videos in the Shorts tab, Subscriptions feed and on a creator’s channel. The exclusive content will be displayed with a star icon, indicating that it’s only available to paying subscribers.
YouTube announced on Thursday that Shorts averages over 70 billion daily views and over 25% of channels in YouTube’s Partner Program monetize their videos through revenue-sharing on Shorts.
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