On Monday, Bumble rolled out a new change to its platform that prevents conversations from languishing in pre-relationship purgatory. We’re busy women, and don’t have time to wait around for you to message us back, guys. In an interview with Mashable, Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe said that the platform would be altering its previous policy, which allowed men to take “essentially forever” to reply (or not) to their matches’ messages. Now, if they’re interested, they’re going to have to show it. Or at least write back.
This, Wolfe says, will further the app’s goal of establishing an even playing field for women and men. Previously, after two people established a “match” by swiping on each other’s profiles, the woman had 24 hours to act, and thereafter, the man had any amount of time to respond.
“She was held to 24 hours to reach out to you,” Wolfe noted in her message to men who are active on the site. “We feel it’s only fair you’re confined to the same rules.”
This new feature may also help address the distinctly digital problem of “ghosting,” or suddenly ceasing all communication, a contentious phenomenon that some consider the kindest way to end a relationship, and that others would call a cowardly move. According to a Fortune magazine report, 80 percent of Millennials report having been ghosted at some point during their lives. Wolfe asserts that having to either reply or say goodbye will serve as some form of solution.
The 24-hour timeframe was Bumble’s most requested feature, and already seems to be paying off. Wolfe says that during its one-week testing period in the U.K., response rates jumped by 20 percent. So hop to, friends. The clock is ticking.
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