More swiping, less meeting: how online dating has gone more virtual amid the coronavirus pandemic
- Online dating apps are more popular than before, but users are becoming more selective about meeting up in person amid social distancing measures
- Instead, daters are chatting on apps longer, and getting creative with virtual options such as video calls, online games and Netflix Party
They matched on dating app Coffee Meets Bagel and had been chatting for about a week, bonding over a shared passion for travel. But after he asked her out a few times, Hong Kong-based freelance writer Monana Liu decided to politely and firmly turn him down one last time, cutting off contact.
“He was quite aggressive when he kept trying to convince me that there wouldn’t be a risk for infection, unless we’re leaning very close to each other,” Liu recalled. “I don’t feel comfortable dining with a stranger at a time like this, because I am quite serious about the health concerns.”
In a survey of more than 1,200 Hong Kong-based users in late July, Coffee Meets Bagel found that 95 per cent said it was “at least somewhat important” that their date took Covid-19 precautions seriously, with eight in 10 considering it a deal-breaker if their date did not wear a mask, and seven out of 10 feeling the same if their date did not adhere to social distancing guidelines.
“I think it’s really important that you make decisions that feel comfortable for you,” said Dawoon Kang, co-founder and chief dating officer of Coffee Meets Bagel. “And that requires having built some level of trust with whoever you're choosing to meet.”