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Facebook (FB) Dating's European Expansion to Stir Up Competition

Facebook FB recently announced the launch of its dating service in 32 European countries. Facebook Dating, a feature available within the Facebook app, was launched in the United States in September last year. It is currently available in 20 other countries.

The company had to delay the rollout of Facebook Dating in Europe in February after concerns were raised by Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC). Per the regulator, Facebook failed to give it enough time and documentation to assess data protection impacts or decision-making processes undertaken by the company.

The dating service, which appears as a tab in the Facebook app, will take the first names and ages of users from their Facebook profiles, which cannot be edited. User’s last names will not be displayed and they will have discretion over sharing their personal information on their profiles.

It also allows the users to share stories from Facebook or Instagram onto their dating profiles and includes the Secret Crush tool, which enables users to select up to nine of their existing friends whom they are interested in to add to their dating network.

Markedly, more than 1.5 billion matches have been created in the 20 countries since the launch of Facebook Dating.

Facebook, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

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Facebook Dating Stirs Up Competition

Per a Verified Market Research report, the online dating services market is projected to hit $9.39 billion by 2026, at a CAGR of 4.6%. Surge in internet penetration and the number of singles around the globe has resulted in significant growth in the online dating services market.

Notably, Facebook Dating is expected to pose stiff competition to global dating services like Bumble, Match Group’s MTCH Match.com, OKCupid and Tinder.

Facebook’s shares have surged 35.4% in the year-to-date period compared with the Zacks Internet services industry’s growth of 23.1%. The dating service could not only boost the social media giant’s popularity but also improve its penetration among singles.

Facebook continues to have a significant competitive edge due to its scale and diversified product offerings. It wins the game for holding a greater number of monthly active users, 2.7 billion as of second-quarter 2020, while Tinder had 6.2 million average subscribers.

Facebook Dating doesn’t need any additional downloads, and thus uniquely taps into the company’s existing user base of around 3 billion. Its mode of operation stands out, thanks to its interesting inclusive options.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Facebook currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Alphabet GOOGL and Autohome ATHM are a couple of better-ranked stocks in the same industry. Both stocks carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Long-term earnings growth rate for Alphabet and Autohome is pegged at 16.3% and 18%, respectively.

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