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Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

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Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#51

Post by car_analogy »

8f2ab37a-ed6c wrote: post #37
trhway wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you seem to mistake market efficiency for abuse of an asymmetry. If anything, allowing abuse of an asymmetry leads to decrease in efficiency. They don't need better service if they can just extract more from you for the same service.

The part I don't understand though is why this is a problem. If you think the price of the service is too high, move on to a competitor. I did once I saw how much they were going to charge me this year. Hinge/Bumble are a much better ROI at this moment, and Tinder lost a long time paying customer. That's the market at work.

> If you think the price of the service is too high, move on to a competitor.

It's a problem because it puts consumers at an even further disadvantage in a game that's already stacked against them. That you're still willing to pay makes no difference - you're still worse off than before.

Maybe it would be somewhat fair if consumers had their own well-funded departments, studying corporations to determine the lowest price they'd still be willing to sell a product for, and then collectively negotiating the price.

But we don't, and it would be a waste of humanity's limited time to play these zero-sum, when we can just make the behavior illegal.

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#52

Post by bruce511 »

8f2ab37a-ed6c wrote: post #6

Disclaimer: I think Tinder is a rent-extracting garbage app, BUT, philosophically speaking, why is dynamic pricing unfair? If the algorithm detects that based on your biography, location and usage patterns, you would keep using this service even if it charged you 5x as much, isn't that just the market becoming more efficient?

"fairness" is an interesting concept in commerce of any kind, which seems to be more prevalent in the US than elsewhere.[1]

If one thinks of commerce as "willing buyer,willing seller" then a transaction occurs at the point where both sides are content with the money/product swap. What other people paid for the same product is only tangentially relevant - if I'm happy with the transaction today why should I be less happy tomorrow based on someone else's transaction?

Outside the US you see this in places where markets are more fluid, and in some places have no pricing at all. You are expected to haggle (I mean, negotiate) - failure to do so makes a fool of the vendor to offer first too low a price.

In other words, the world is unfair. Sometimes in your favour, sometimes against. The sooner one accepts that the easier life becomes..

Equally though unfairness creates a gap in the market. Girls toys cost more than boys toys (same toy, different package) suggests an opportunity.

[1] for the purposes of this discussion I'm not talking about protected classes, such as race. There are some unfairness that are considered to be unacceptable.

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#53

Post by tmpz22 »

8f2ab37a-ed6c wrote: post #42
anonporridge wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Those people aren't using Tinder. There are "dating" sites that specialize in connecting wealthy/successful people (mostly older men) with young, beautiful people (mostly women). They do charge quite a bit and make bank.

I'm not an expert at that particular area, but my anecdotal impression was that high-end matchmaking services (say 50-100k to find a life partner) were fairly underwhelming. Or are you talking about the whole sugar dating world here?

GP is most certainly referencing the sugar daddy explosion

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#54

Post by 8f2ab37a-ed6c »

car_analogy wrote: post #51
8f2ab37a-ed6c wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The part I don't understand though is why this is a problem. If you think the price of the service is too high, move on to a competitor. I did once I saw how much they were going to charge me this year. Hinge/Bumble are a much better ROI at this moment, and Tinder lost a long time paying customer. That's the market at work.

> If you think the price of the service is too high, move on to a competitor. It's a problem because it puts consumers at an even further disadvantage in a game that's already stacked against them. That you're still willing to pay makes no difference - you're still worse off than before. Maybe it would be somewhat fair if consumers had their own well-funded departments, studying corporations to determine the lowest p…

But, that's not what I'm saying. I'm in fact not willing to pay, and I'm moving on to a competitor that provides the same service for less.

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#55

Post by maybeiambatman »

mattnewton wrote: post #31
roenxi wrote: post #12

1. It isn't obvious to me that dating for older people is to be treated as the same service as dating for younger people. There are profound differences. Dating as a 20 year old female is a completely different situation to dating as a 40 year old of either gender. 2. Even if it is the same service, what is the problem with Tinder charging some people an extra $20? This isn't an essential service in any way. 3. found…

> Even if it is the same service, what is the problem with Tinder charging some people an extra $20? This isn't an essential service in any way. I am not a lawyer, but I do know age is a protected class in the US. It could be seen as age based discrimination. My understanding is that protected classes are the same criteria we use to, for example make it illegal to have a separate price for different races. Edit: as t…

Most country clubs in the US will have different initiation fees and monthly dues based on age. How do they get away with it?

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#56

Post by judge2020 »

maybeiambatman wrote: post #55
mattnewton wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Even if it is the same service, what is the problem with Tinder charging some people an extra $20? This isn't an essential service in any way. I am not a lawyer, but I do know age is a protected class in the US. It could be seen as age based discrimination. My understanding is that protected classes are the same criteria we use to, for example make it illegal to have a separate price for different races. Edit: as t…

Most country clubs in the US will have different initiation fees and monthly dues based on age. How do they get away with it?

Same with how nearly every theatre in the country charges less for children and elderly patrons.

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#57

Post by greatpostman »

symlinkk wrote: post #35
greatpostman wrote: post #2

Tinder is basically 5/100 guys getting all the matches per 90/100 women.

Funny that a few years ago this was an “incel” opinion and would get you banned from Reddit. Now it’s practically common sense

Yeah the narrative has really changed. It’s not that different from the lab leak theory

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#58

Post by 8f2ab37a-ed6c »

tmpz22 wrote: post #53
8f2ab37a-ed6c wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not an expert at that particular area, but my anecdotal impression was that high-end matchmaking services (say 50-100k to find a life partner) were fairly underwhelming. Or are you talking about the whole sugar dating world here?

GP is most certainly referencing the sugar daddy explosion

I don't think that's apples-to-apples though. Sugar dating is typically transactional and typically doesn't lead to genuine connection and relationships, whereas most datings apps are about something more than an occasional hookup, including Tinder (see the millions of "not here for a hookup" statements in womens' profiles that have been there for years).

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#59

Post by [deleted] »

roenxi wrote: post #12

1. It isn't obvious to me that dating for older people is to be treated as the same service as dating for younger people. There are profound differences. Dating as a 20 year old female is a completely different situation to dating as a 40 year old of either gender. 2. Even if it is the same service, what is the problem with Tinder charging some people an extra $20? This isn't an essential service in any way. 3. found…

[deleted]

Re: Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service

#60

Post by zaphirplane »

thanhhaimai wrote: post #8

Not a Tinder user or investor, but this makes me curious. Why is it okay for insurance companies to sell me products with hyper-personalized pricing (often based on sex, age, and race), but it's not okay for Tinder or other tech companies to do so?

That’s not an arbitrary pricing on how much they think you can afford, this is (excluding sleazy one) based on risk profile where age is one of the attributes that changes the risk profile
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