Facebook launches Facebook Dating in Colombia

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of
Facebook, which launched a dating feature in Columbia on
Thursday.
Chip
Somodevilla/Getty

• Facebook has launched its new dating service, which was
  teased earlier this year and rolled out in beta to employees a
  few months later.
• For now, Facebook Dating is only available in Colombia, but
  the company is expected to bring it to other countries in the
  future.
• The service is built into Facebook’s core mobile app, but is
  separate from most features in it.
• The service will compete against the likes of Tinder, Bumble,
  and OkCupid.

Facebook is officially in the dating game, but for now, you’ll
have to be in Colombia to use it to find your next match.

The social networking giant on Thursday launched its new dating
feature, which it unveiled earlier this year. Facebook Dating is
only available in the South American country, although the
company is expected to eventually offer it in the US and other
countries.

“More than 200 million people have listed themselves as single in
their relationship status on Facebook,” Nathan Sharp, the product
manager for the new dating feature, said in a statement. “We view
this as an incredible opportunity to continue helping people
build relationships in meaningful ways on Facebook.”

Facebook is offering the new feature as a service within its
eponymous mobile app. Users have to opt into it. Once they do,
Facebook will suggest potential matches based on interests and
activities. Unlike Tinder, the leading dating app, Facebook’s
service doesn’t allow users to swipe left or right to choose
potential dates based on their looks alone.

Although built within Facebook’s app, the dating service is kept
largely apart from it. The company won’t suggest users’ Facebook
friends as possible matches, for example. And users’ dating
activity won’t be posted to the News Feed or their Facebook
profile pages.

Facebook Dating has plenty of rivals

Facebook is entering a crowded market, with apps ranging from
Tinder to OkCupid to Bumble catering to singles looking for
romantic connections. However, Facebook’s wealth of knowledge
about users’ interests and activities could help give it a leg
up. The company is hoping to distinguish the service from some of
its rivals by focusing on helping users find long-term
relationships, rather than hookups or one-night stands.

Screen shots of Facebook Dating, which is a part of the
main Facebook app, but is kept separate from other Facebook
services.
Facebook

The company
announced the dating service at its F8 developer conference
earlier this year and touted it as an example of how it is
increasingly focusing on promoting “meaningful” interactions
among its users. The service comes as usage of Facebook’s primary
service has been declining and trust in the company has been
waning in the wake of a series of scandals and setbacks,
including the leaking of data on some 87 million users to
Cambridge Analytica, a data firm that was linked with President
Donald Trump.