Sometimes I think the whole world is possessed with smartphones, mobile browsing, and building thousands upon thousands of applications to make it easier to stay connected to just about anything via your mobile phone. It should come as no surprise, then, that online dating has “gone mobile” enthusiastically and deliberately. Mobile applications are the hottest ticket around and online dating sites are not about to be left behind.

Any online dating site that wants to compete in the marketplace absolutely must have a mobile “app” available for its users, and just about every major online dating service does indeed have one. SpeedDate, Skout, Radaroo, DateCheck, and Zoosk are a few examples of these rapidly growing and expanding types of services. Even the more mainstream dating sites like Match.com are getting in on the act, putting out apps designed to enhance the experience of their members.

But don’t for a moment think that these companies are doing all of this just to be nice; no, there is a huge amount of money to be made from mobile online dating. In 2007 the mobile dating market was valued at about $330 million, while in 2008 that number jumped to a whopping $550 million; the projection for 2013 is for the value to increase to approximately $1.3 billion. It’s no wonder, then, that online dating services are jumping headfirst into the mobile marketplace.

What does this mean for you? In general, the explosive growth of mobile online dating options works in your favor because it allows you even greater choice and access when it comes to dating. Where you need to be careful, though, is in the added costs. Some sites offer their mobile services for free, while others charge a fee; additionally, depending on your service plan you may get hit with big overage charges for the extra data usage you’ll rack up using these kinds of apps.

The best approach is to read the fine print on the service you’re interested in, check with your mobile phone company regarding your data usage plan, and then start taking advantage of the flexibility and fun of using online mobile dating apps!

News & Views Cell Phone, Dating Applications, iPhone, Match.com, Mobile Phone, Zoosk

Just about everything else on the internet is now accessible via your mobile phone, so why not online dating as well? It makes a lot of sense, really, because so many people now connect to the internet as much (or even more) using their mobile phone than using their laptop or desktop computer.

The latest online dating service to “go mobile” is Zoosk, which claims to be the “world’s largest social dating community”. They actually are offering two different applications, one that’s strictly for mobile phones and one that’s designed to bring the online dating experience directly onto your computer desktop. It’s easier than ever to always have Zoosk at your fingertips, right? Right!

But is this kind of approach really a good thing?

It’s already frustrating enough dealing with poor mobile phone etiquette, how much more annoying is it going to be to have lots more people focused on their online dating activities this way as well? Imagine sitting in a meeting where the person next to you is receiving updates, winks, virtual gifts, and the like, throughout; and you thought simple texting was bothersome!

And what happens when you’re out with one person on a date but you receive messages from another person at the same time? Imagine the raft of new excuses you’re going to need… “That was my mother calling”… “It was a wrong number”… “I’ll just call them back later”… these old tired excuses just might not cut it anymore?

This is all a bit ‘tongue in cheek’ of course, but the underlying issue is something to think about. If you want the latest in convenience and accessibility for online dating then by all means look for a service like Zoosk that offers a mobile application. If, however, you’re not quite ready to be THAT accessible, think carefully before allowing this kind of application to invade your mobile phone!

News & Views Access, Cell Phone, Internet, Mobile Phone

Online dating sites have always tried to offer unique and interesting ways to match up potential mates. From personality traits and characteristics to hobbies and activities, there’s no shortage of supposedly “guaranteed” approaches to helping you find your life partner.

Now there’s something new in the world of online dating that might seem really strange – genetic profiling. Yes, genetic profiling. Sounds like something out of CSI, right?

The really interesting thing is that there is some scientific evidence to support the idea that your genes have some role to play in how compatible you are with another person. It seems there is a particular group of human genes called human leukocyte antigens (HLAs) that relate to your body’s immune functions, but they also seem to produce certain attraction-related responses in some cases.

This response was tested by – get ready for this – by conducting an experiment where women sniffed the sweaty t-shirts of men. Researchers found that women tended to prefer the scent of t-shirts from men whose HLAs were very different from their own. Additional research has been done over the last couple of years that seems to confirm there is at least some correlation between couples with different HLAs and their long term relationship satisfaction.

One company, called GenePartner, has started to offer testing to decipher your HLAs in the hope that someday the results from these kinds of tests will be incorporated into mainstream online dating websites. I wouldn’t recommend running out and spending your hard earned money on such a test right away, but it’s worth tucking away in the back of your mind as something to keep an eye on in the months and years to come!

News & Views Genetics, Hobbies, Personality, Profiling, Women