Dating in the era of social media can be a gift and a curse. On one hand, it’s easier to reach out to those that you previously may have been unable to. On the other, there are a multitude of social media apps that allow people to pretend to be people they’re not or present themselves to be much more attractive than they actually are. You can run into these problems and more on sites and apps like Match.com, Tinder or Zoosk just to name a few. In the near future, social media giant, Facebook, will be stepping into the playing field. After announcing the developing of their “dating” feature back in May, Facebook has decided to begin internal testing and begin revealing details about the upcoming feature.
First things first, Facebook wants users to know that they are not looking to creating an entirely new “Facebook Dating” app as many have suggested over the summer. Instead, they are looking to expand from within their already existing platform. In addition, Facebook has revealed that the actions of those who choose to opt into the dating feature will not appear in the regular news feed. Only those who have chosen to opt into the dating feature will be able to see your actions. Furthermore, users will be able to determine whether or not they would like their friends to see them within the feature. Users will be able to access groups and events within the dating feature as well. Other details include the ability to select a non binary orientation and the ability to block someone on the dating feature, but not on Facebook.
Other details that have yet to be ironed out are a proposed limit on the number of people a user can express an interest in. The tech giant is also exploring the idea of having ads on the dating feature. More details will be ironed out as they continue developing the feature. Facebook will continue to slowly move their way into the dating market, but they appear to be in no rush to do so.
