Grindr

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Grindr
Developer(s)Nearby Buddy Finder, LLC.
Initial releaseMarch 25, 2009 (2009-03-25)
Stable release
1.8 / July 16, 2012 (2012-07-16)
Operating systemApple iOS, Android and Blackberry OS
TypeGeosocial networking
WebsiteGrindr.com

Grindr is a geosocial networking application geared towards gay men. It runs on iOS, Blackberry OS and Android devices. Available for download from the Apple App Store and Google Play, Grindr comes in both free and subscription-based versions (Grindr Xtra). The app makes use of the device geolocation, which allows users to locate other men within close proximity. This is accomplished through a user interface that displays a grid of representative pictures of men, arranged from nearest to farthest away. Tapping on a picture will display a brief profile for that user, as well as the option to chat, send pictures, and share one's location.

History

Grindr was launched on March 25, 2009 by Nearby Buddy Finder, LLC.[1] Initially, cautious but positive remarks circulated through the gay blogosphere on sites such as Queerty[2] and Joe My God.[3]

Though based in the United States, the app quickly gained worldwide popularity through word of mouth and various media outlets. On June 18, 2012 Grindr announced that it had officially hit 4 million users in 192 countries across the globe with 1.1 million users online on a daily basis.[4] Joel Simkhai, founder of Grindr, has reported activity in countries as far as Iran, Iraq, Israel and Kazakhstan.[5] As of June 2012, the United States hosts the highest number of Grindr users with 1,558,031, while London topped the list of cities with 350,446 users.[6] British users increased by 30,000 alone after the app was mentioned by Stephen Fry on the popular TV show Top Gear.

In January 2011, Grindr won the award for "Best Mobile Dating Site" at the iDate Awards 2011.[7] Grindr announced in March 2011 that a straight version of the application was under development temporarily titled Project Amicus.[8][9]

On September 8, 2011, Grindr launched Blendr, a similar app for people of all sexual orientations, with additional features intended to facilitate non-sexual friendships.[10]

In January 2012 Grindr announced it was named the winner of TechCrunch’s 2011 Crunchies Award for Best Location Application at the Fifth Annual Crunchies Awards Ceremony in San Francisco at The Davies Symphony Hall.

Separately, Grindr was crowned the winner of the 2012 iDate Awards in two of the 12 categories for Best Mobile Dating App and Best New Technology at the ninth annual Dating Industry & Internet Dating Conference in Miami. Grindr previously received an iDate Award in 2011 for Best Mobile Dating App.

In April 2012, Grindr announced that About.com's readers named Grindr the Best Dating App for the 2012 About.com Readers' Choice Awards, with 74 percent of readers choosing Grindr over Are You Interested, Skout, Tagged, Tingle and Zoosk. In 2011, About.com added the Best Dating App category, and out of all the nominees, Grindr is the only exclusively gay app to be nominated – not to mention the first gay app to win the coveted title of Best Dating App.

Additionally, both Grindr and Blendr were selected as Official Honorees of the 16th Annual Webby Awards for award-winning work in the Social (handheld devices) category. Out of nearly 10,000 entries received from all 50 US states and over 60 countries, the Official Honoree distinction is awarded only to the top 15% of all work entered that exhibits remarkable achievement.

Grindr Xtra

Grindr Xtra is the advertisement-free, subscription version of Grindr, which makes use of the Apple Push Notification Service. Additionally, Grindr Xtra contains features such as loading up to 300 users at once, unlimited blocking of other users and quickly swiping between profiles.[11] Users have the option to renew their subscription via iTunes in one, three, six, and twelve month purchases.

Devices

Currently, Grindr is available on the iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Android and the following Blackberry models: Curve 8300, Curve 8310, Curve 8320, Curve 8330, Curve 8330m, Curve 8350i, Curve 8520, Curve 8530, Curve 8900, Bold 9000, Tour 9630, Bold 9650, Bold 9700, Torch 9800. Plans for an app for Windows Phone were announced by the company on Twitter. [12]

Controversy and criticism

Grindr has received criticism from both a programming and a sociological viewpoint. In January 2012 the program was hacked and hundreds of thousands of users' personal information became vulnerable to exploitation. Based on Grindr’s ongoing investigation, the company took legal and technological actions to block a site that violated their terms of service. The site impacted a small number of primarily Australian Grindr users and it remains shut down.[13]

There is criticism that many users of the app use what some find to be offensive, racist, and/or homophobic language, such as "No Asians", "No Blacks" or "No femmes". Grindr users can list race in their preferences, but can be banned for posting material perceived to incite racism, bigotry, hatred or physical harm of any kind. However, Grindr has been accused of lax enforcement of profiles that use the language as cited above, having stated that it considers statements such as "No Blacks" to be only sexual preference, and not racist. Grindr claims that a large team of moderators enforce the application's policy guidelines, and that the company encourages its users to state what they are looking for as opposed to what they are not looking for, however many users of the application do not believe these policies are commonly enforced or encouraged as much as is claimed.[14]

Another issue that continues to plague Grindr is the unreliability of their servers. Users are often unable to connect for long periods or are disconnected for no apparent reason.

References

  1. ^ Jason Kincaid, [1], TechCrunch, Mar 25, 2009
  2. ^ "Cruise Local Guys On Your iPhone / Queerty". Queerty.com. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
  3. ^ "Joe. My. God.: Q: Location? A: Right Behind You, Dude". Joemygod.blogspot.com. 2009-03-26. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
  4. ^ Carmody, Sarah. "Grindr's Global Dominance Hits 2m". bent News. bent. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  5. ^ http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2009/08/17/app-watch-grindr-says-its-more-than-a-hook-up-service/], Wall Street Journal,AUGUST 17, 2009
  6. ^ "Where in the World Is Grindr?". Grindr.com. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
  7. ^ "Grindr Named 'Best Mobile Dating Site' at 2011 iDate Awards | Grindr Blog". Blog.grindr.com. 2011-01-24. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
  8. ^ Dominic Rushe New York (2011-02-06). "Grindr app goes straight – but there are different rules for women | Technology | The Observer". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
  9. ^ Kapp, Matt. "Grindr: Welcome to the World's Biggest, Scariest Gay Bar". Vanity Fair. Conde Nast. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  10. ^ Vara, Vauhini (2011-09-08). "App Watch: IPhone-Assisted Dates Go Straight - Digits - WSJ". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 11 September 2011.
  11. ^ "App Store - Grindr Xtra". Itunes.apple.com. 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
  12. ^ "Grindr blocks Metrocrush, but planning a Windows Phone 7 app". WMPoweruser. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  13. ^ Allen, Danny. "Some Sydney Grindr Accounts Reportedly Hacked". Gizmodo.
  14. ^ Bielski, Zosia. "'No Asian. No Indian': Picky dater or racist dater?". The Globe and Mail.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Grindr&oldid=509015269"