Hookd Launches Next-Generation Dating App for Gay and Bisexual Men

Hookd is a new gay-dating app that has just made its global launch. The app will first roll out in Spain, Brazil and Israel, and later this summer in the USA, South America, Europe and the rest of the world. Hookd promises to be a safer and more private dating app whilst also working more organically than its competitors. Hookd's majot innovation is that it functions with a real-time feed, similar to social media sites like Facebook, in which users post what it is specifically they are looking for. 

Other users reply to the requests with instant messages. Another central feature is the limiting of photo uploads to the in-app camera, improving safety and putting an end to the problem of photoshopped and outdated pictures as well as catfishing and impersonation “We realized that dating apps have a variety of serious issues, but that these issues are quite simple and do not necessarily need to exist!” said Daniel Joseph, Hookd Founder exclusively to The Advocate. “We developed Hookd which uses more intuitive dating models with the mission to offer an engaging and safe online dating alternative.” The popularity of gay dating apps continues to surge; Grindr reported over 6 million active users in 2016, Scruff currently claims to have over 10M users and, Hornet, 15M downloads and 3M Active users. This rise in popularity of dating apps has also given rise to frustration, with misaligned expectations, fake profiles, cat-fishing, wasted time, and most importantly, an alarming number of security issues with the LGBT community often being a target.

In April, a man sued Grindr after his ex-lover created a fake profile and invited more than a thousand men to his house for sex. Hookd aims to put an end to such security problems. Unlike other dating apps, Hookd will work on a real-time basis, mimicking social media news feeds. The specific requests save users time and ensures that they are pursuing the same objective – whether that be a gym buddy, casual dating, or something more serious. Utilizing direct private replies to these requests also helps to prevent unsolicited encounters.

It will eventually feature an HIV filter for those that choose to use it.

What makes Hookd a game changer in the hook-up app arena?

Most dating apps are like the yellow pages of people, anyone who signs up is added to the list and you can filter that list to find what you're looking for—and that sounds good in theory. But the fact that someone is on the list doesn't mean anything about what they are looking for right now. Sometimes we want to have sex, sometimes we just want to chat with someone, and sometimes we just want to check messages or speak to one specific user.  Instead of browsing through profiles, in Hookd, you see a feed of real time offers from guys and what they are looking for right now. If you don't publish what you're looking for, guys will not see you and approach you with unsolicited messages. And when you're ready to meet—post it and let the chatting begin.

How come no one has done something like this by now? It's often occurred to me that these platforms would be much better if they had those features.

Grindr introduced the concept of sorting user's profiles based on proximity, and it worked for them and made them very popular, so other developers “embraced” that concept and either targeted a specific sub-group of users (Fetish, Bears, etc.) or aimed to make a 'better Grindr' with more features. The result was that the majority of apps have a similar core/static experience and they look and behave in a similar way.  You get the same list of guys, with the same pattern in a slightly different packaging and features. We are offering a completely new way, as our slogan says, disengaging from past models, creating a new, much more relevant approach. We're quickly building a community and invite guys to sign up and get HOOKD.

So while you're innovating this market, Grindr decided to produce content, [see Into]. What do you think about that as marketing move?

I think it's great, and they should focus more on that. [laughs]

Download or visit gothookd.com.