| Initial release | 2011 |
|---|---|
| Operating system | iOS, Android |
| Available in | English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Dutch, Hungarian, Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Portuguese |
| Type | Geosocial networking |
| Website | www |
GuySpy is a location based online social network, gay dating app. It is available on Android, iOS and via web browser. The app uses location based services like GPS to connect gay, bi and curious men. Through their platform users are able to create profiles with detailed descriptions and with multiple photos. They are able to chat with guys around them and send additional photos, have video messaging and provide their exact location. There is a voice option within the app as well. [1] The app is similar to Grindr, GuySpy also has a map feature that allows the users to search for other guys in other towns and cities. [2] [3] The app was officially launched in 2011 for GayWhistler's WinterPride festival. [4] In 2013 GuySpy launched The PEARL Pride Party app, which was helping users to keep up to date, build and maintain a personal schedule, share information via social networks related to global LGBT pride events and circuit parties. [5]
The app was founded in 2010 [6] originally by Stark Mobile and was purchased by Pink Triangle Press in 2017. [7] [8]
GuySpy has run into difficulties with Facebook's Community Standards several times. In 2012 their Facebook page was blocked for over 30 days, and later they posted an image of a nude man and it was taken down within few hours. GuySpy has challenged Facebook's community standards, considering them to be homophobic as they allowed similar images that showed women. [9]
The app's 2013 billboard campaign in Vancouver received complaints. The complainant alleged that the advertisement offended standards of public decency. The ad was showing two men, one sitting on the other's back with the phrase "Taste the difference" According to the council's opinion the words crossed the line of the acceptability of Clause 14. [10]
Pink Triangle Press is an independent, Canadian media organization specializing in LGBTQ2S+ journalism, television and online interactive media. Founded in 1971, Pink Triangle Press is one of the longest-publishing LGBTQ2S+ media groups in the world. Today, Pink Triangle Press publishes Xtra, an online magazine and community platform covering LGBTQ2S+ culture, politics and health. Pink Triangle Press also publishes a series of newsletters including Pink Ticket Travel and Wander+Lust. Pink Ticket Travel is a Queer travel newsletter featuring travel tips and guidelines for LGBTQ2S+ travelers. Wander+Lust is a newsletter featuring travel tips and tricks for gay and bi men, including insider recommendations and exclusive offers.
Gaydar is a profile-based dating website for gay and bisexual men.
Mobile social networking is social networking where individuals with similar interests converse and connect with one another through their mobile phone and/or tablet. Much like web-based social networking, mobile social networking occurs in virtual communities.
This is a partial, non-exhaustive list of notable online dating websites and mobile apps.
Grindr is a location-based social networking and online dating application targeted towards gay and bisexual men, and transgender people.
Blendr was an online dating application based on geosocial networking for Android, iOS and Facebook. It is designed to connect like-minded people near to each other. It was created by Joel Simkhai and patterned after his previous app Grindr which is instead aimed at gay men. Blendr claims to be "powered by" Badoo but largely appears to be the same service. As of 2022, it had 200 million users worldwide and requires users to be over the age of 18.
Her is a dating and community app for the lesbian, queer, bisexual and sapphic community. It was designed for women; non-binary people; and transgender people. It is available for iOS and Android.
Blued is currently the largest gay social network app in the world. Launched in 2012 in China, the app now has over 40 million users worldwide in 193 countries. The application is available on Android and iOS. Its features include verified profiles, live broadcasting, a timeline, and group conversations. In 2016, the app was valued at 600 million dollars.
Scruff is an international social application for men seeking men that runs on iOS and Android devices. The app allows users to upload profiles and photos, and search for other members by location and shared interests. Users can directly message other users or they can use the app's "Woof" feature, which allows users to express interest in another user's profile.
Huggle was a location-based social application which connected users based on commonality of places they frequent. The app was developed through a partnership with entrepreneur Andrey Andreev. Following a soft launch in 2015, it was officially launched in July 2016. It was acquired by Badoo in 2018. In 2020 Bumble decided it would no longer maintain the platform.
An online dating application, commonly known as a dating app, is an online dating service presented through a mobile phone application. These apps often take advantage of a smartphone's GPS location capabilities, always on-hand presence, and access to mobile wallets. These apps aim to speed up the online dating process of sifting through potential dating partners, chatting, flirting, and potentially meeting or becoming romantically involved.
Joel Simkhai is an Israeli-American tech entrepreneur. He is the founder and former CEO of geosocial networking and dating apps Grindr and Blendr. His original goal in starting Grindr was for people with similar interests to find new friends nearby.
NOYB – European Center for Digital Rights is a non-profit organization based in Vienna, Austria established in 2017 with a pan-European focus. Co-founded by Austrian lawyer and privacy activist Max Schrems, NOYB aims to launch strategic court cases and media initiatives in support of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the proposed ePrivacy Regulation, and information privacy in general. The organisation was established after a funding period during which it has raised annual donations of €250,000 by supporting members. Currently, NOYB is financed by more than 4,400 supporting members.
Squirt.org, launched by Pink Triangle Press in 1999, is a Canadian website which describes itself as a place "where men meet other men for sex, cruising, hookups, dating, fun and friendship". The website, based in Toronto, is available worldwide. It includes user-generated listings of parks, saunas, public toilets and popular sexual locations for men who have sex with men (MSM). It was called "unique and ideal for cruising world-wide" by the 2006 Spartacus International Gay Guide.
Taimi is a dating app that caters to LGBTQI+ people. The network matches internet users based on their selected preferences and location. Taimi runs on iOS and Android.
Recon is a location-based online dating application and service specifically for gay men interested in fetish and kink. It launched as a website in 1999, and as an iOS app in 2010. It has 189,000 active users as of 2018.
DOWN is a location-based social networking and online dating application for users looking for casual relationships and hookups. Users can swipe up for more serious dating, swipe down for casual hookups, or left to pass, and continue to the next profile. DOWN bills itself as a open-minded, sex-positive alternative to other dating apps.
Hornet is a location-based social networking and online dating application for gay, bisexual, and non-heterosexual men, as well as other men who have sex with men (MSM). In 2018, it was seen as "Grindr's chief competitor in the gay app market". As well as featuring other men, the app contains city guide books and LGBT-specific news.
Fitlads was a social networking, dating/hookup website and app for gay and bisexual men in the United Kingdom. It was launched in April 2003, and introduced video to the app in 2008.
| App-based | |
|---|---|
| Web-based | |
| Defunct | |
