Guys, Tinder and Hinge are being sued for deliberately turning people into ‘addicts’

Swipe, match, swipe, swipe: Looking for love online feels like a depressingly never-ending cycle. And – on Valentine’s Day – a lawsuit against Tinder, Hinge, and other Match dating apps was filed, claiming this never-ending quest has been created by the apps’ design. According to the lawsuit, which was filed in California, Match intentionally designs its dating apps with game-like features that “lock users into a perpetual pay-to-play loop” and encourage “compulsive” use.

The lawsuit even goes so far as to say these apps turn users into “addicts” who purchase expensive subscriptions for access to certain features (like getting more roses on Hinge) in order to find love and get more likes and dates: “Match’s business model depends on generating returns through the monopolization of users’ attention, and Match has guaranteed its market success by fomenting dating app addiction that drives expensive subscriptions and perpetual use,” the lawsuit, filed by six app users, says.

@ameliasamson

Dating apps are being sued and for good reason

♬ Chopin Nocturne No.2 Op.9-2(1391533) – 314P

Additionally, the lawsuit claims Match “employs recognised dopamine-manipulating product features” to turn users into “gamblers locked in a search for psychological rewards that Match makes elusive on purpose.”

Previously, the co-founder of Tinder, Jonathan Badeen, who invented the app’s swiping mechanism has admitted the feature was inspired by BF Skinner’s famous experiment with pigeons where hungry birds are conditioned to believe that food delivered randomly into a tray was triggered by their pecking. Essentially, it’s a hacked rewards system, which encourages the subject to keep pecking (or swiping) for a dopamine hit.

@maddie_lyn111

please .. my self esteem can’t take any more hits #hinge #datingapps

♬ BAILEYS SOUND – Me!

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In response, Match has said the lawsuit is “ridiculous” and claimed they’re still trying to help people get people out on dates and off apps: “This lawsuit is ridiculous and has zero merit,” they said. “Our business model is not based on advertising or engagement metrics. We actively strive to get people on dates every day and off our apps. Anyone who states anything else doesn’t understand the purpose and mission of our entire industry.”

Meanwhile, on TikTok users responded to the lawsuit against Match saying: “They should be required to publicly publish their algorithm” and “I’ve been calling out Bumble for having a LIFETIME subscription option. A whole lifetime!” and “I better get $1000000 dollars. I’ve been on these apps for five years!!”

Related stories recommended by the writer:

• Warning: All of the innocent behaviour that could get you banned from Hinge 

• Hinge questions: The best profile answers to get the most matches

• Hinge reveals which questions get the most responses