Rmeeting your soul mate on the Internet has been one of the most spectacular sociological movements of the digital age at the start of the 21st century.e century. The sociologist Eva Illouz saw the beginnings of The End of Love (Seuil, 2020) and, in its wake, the economist Daniel Cohen, a shift into a dehumanized digital civilization.
Are we already leaving this era to enter another? In any case, on the stock market, dating applications are no longer popular. The largest group in the sector, the American Match Group, has seen its market capitalization plummet by more than 70% since its peak in 2021, and its growth is eroding a little more each year.
However, it is a little early to call it a flop to be placed in the ephemeral fashion department. Moreover, the financial results of Match Group, published Tuesday January 30, reassured investors. The company saw its turnover increase by 6% in 2023, and its profits almost double. It must be said that the company claims that one in two romantic encounters started on the Internet in the world was started on one of its sites. Its collection brings together all tastes, from the naughtiest to the wisest, including the French Meetic, purchased in 2015, and the Tinder, Hinge and Match applications.
2,000 sites in France
Beyond this good financial health, the first worrying signs are appearing and explaining the disenchantment on the stock market. Each year, growth is less strong, while competition is increasingly fierce and intense. According to Bpifrance, there are 8,000 dating sites in the world, including 2,000 in France. And, above all, the paying user base is now declining (−5% in 2023). The group manages to maintain its good results by increasing its subscriptions. At the end of 2023, the firm introduced new subscription prices, including a very elite one at almost 500 dollars (459 euros) per month in the United States.
What concerns Match and its competitors is the arrival of a new generation who seem much less addicted to this practice. For the magazine Wired, very at the forefront of trends, generation Z (15-25 year olds) no longer want to hear about these dehumanizing apps and dream of a return to romanticism. A November 2023 study conducted among American students by the site Axios shows that almost 80% of them do not use this type of applications.
Is this the end of the industrialization of love life? “Just fuck” castigated by Daniel Cohen which would stick to our society of “just-in-time”? As long as there is solitude, encounter merchants will be able to prosper. But they will need to refine their practices