© Reuters. The dating app Tinder is shown on a mobile phone in this picture illustration taken September 1, 2020. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro/Illustration/File Photo
By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Match Group-owned dating app Tinder on Thursday agreed to inform users better about discounted prices for its premium services following scrutiny from national consumer watchdogs in the European Union over its pricing practices.
The authorities’ concerns centred on the way Tinder discloses information about its personalised discounts.
The world’s most popular dating app uses automated means to identify users who showed little or no interest in their standard price premium services in order to offer them personalised discounts.
The watchdogs said Tinder applied these personalised prices without informing users, in breach of the bloc’s consumer laws.
Following a nearly two-year-long discussion with the Consumer Protection Cooperation Network (CPC), the Swedish Consumer Agency and the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets, Tinder will now provide more clarity to users, the European Commission said.
It said Tinder agreed to inform users that discounts the company propose for premium services are personalised by automated means and also why they are being offered personalised discounts.
“Personalisation techniques nullify the possibility to compare prices, effectively disempowering consumers in their purchasing decisions,” EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders said in a statement.
“This is why EU consumer law now requires that traders disclose whether their price is personalised through automated means,” he said.
“While a majority of people use it for free, our premium features can help our users stand out. We promote offers to our users, including personalized ones based on account activity,” a Tinder spokesperson said.
The consumer bodies will monitor Tinder’s compliance, with fines possible for non-compliance.
