Dating app Tinder has officially launched Tinder Social in India, the US, the UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. The new addition started out life as a test feature for Australian users who were apparently looking to find a better way to plan a night out with friends.
Tinder is mostly used as a dating platform, so opening up its borders to social hangouts via Tinder Social seems a bit strange. The company is adding its own twist to the concept of organizing a group meet by allowing other groups to team up together for a night out.
Tinder Social is meant to be used as a real-time way of planning a night out, where anyone can see which of their friends are going out that night and where they’re going. Users can make a group and send an invite to their friends requesting them to join it. Individuals are then able to set their group’s status to say what they’re doing.
Once this phase is done and dusted with, consumers have the ability to swipe up and see what other gatherings are up to. If one member from two separate teams swipe right, the two groups get matched and can message each other to hash out details. While this sounds like a fun concept in theory, there is an inherent risk in meeting a group of strangers.
However, dating on Tinder carries the same kind of risk, so Tinder Social doesn’t fall that far from the tree. In a blog post, the brand says that a group expires at noon the next day, restricting it exclusively to one night out per day. Moreover, people will have to opt-in for the new feature in order to use it. Only then can they see friends who’ve done the same.