Chris M
Gay dating app Jack’d has revealed its plans for the future, after its takeover by Perry Street Software, already the home of rival app Scruff.
Since the acquisition in July 2019, the company has been working on a ‘complete technical overhaul’ of the app. That project is now complete and the main change is the removal of all programmatic (third-party generated) ads, which the company says will improve the level of privacy afforded to its users.
“While most social apps rely on programmatic advertising for profit, Perry Street Software has found a way to remain profitable and successful without the need to work with malicious third party ad networks,” the company told SEXTECHGUIDE.
While it has chosen not to share exactly what this miraculous new business model entails, it hasn’t ruled out advertising or sponsorship altogether, plus the optional premium tier adds another lucrative income stream.
Perry Street will be hoping that the changes will draw a line in the sand for Jack’d, which has had more than its fair share of controversy in recent years.
In 2016, the mass shooter who attacked an Orlando nightclub, killing 49 and injuring 53, had been a regular Jack’d user for over a year, although this was never confirmed by the sites owners, and there wasn’t any attribution of blame implied.
Then in 2019, the app was found to have a bug which allowed private photographs to be viewed by anyone. This was rectified as soon as it was discovered, but led to a $240,000 fine from the New York Attorney General’s Office, which found that then-owners, Online Buddies Inc., had failed to act quickly or comprehensively enough.
Shortly after, the site was taken over by Perry Street, which began the comprehensive security overhaul demanded by that ruling. With this now complete, and all ad-networks removed, it looks like Jack’d is ready to move on to the next, less problematic, hook-up.
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