FROM THE WEB: Why Silicon Valley Can’t Fix Online Dating

Zoe Strimpel, who is completing a PhD on the history of dating services, speaks about the recent move made by Hinge and founder Justin McLeod, who have ditched swiping in favour of a $7 membership fee and more dynamic profiles & matching systems.
Strimpel says: “As someone completing a PhD thesis on the history of dating services, I can confidently tell you that — over and above the soul-destroyingly asinine sound of McLeod’s idea — it won’t work. Nor will any other clever little dating life-hack dreamed up in Silicon Valley, come thick and fast though they do.
“You see, dating entrepreneurs have been attempting to crack the secret sauce of attraction since the 1880s, and it’s never really worked.”
She runs through a brief history of matchmaking services and how they have evolved, and the common problems they have faced trying to find the secret to matching people up.
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