New York
CNN Business
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Bumble is the latest online dating app vying for the hearts of Indian women.
Bumble, which asks women to take the first step, announced on Wednesday plans to launch in India later this year. The company’s new investor, Indian celebrity Priyanka Chopra, will advise on the expansion.
Less than a week ago, rival Tinder launched its My Move feature in India, giving women the option to block men from initiating conversations.
But Bumble’s efforts to expand in India have been underway for some time. Founder and CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd said the newly engaged Chopra first told her “Indian women needed Bumble” a few months ago. Chopra was one of a group of high-profile women who helped Bumble launch its web app, Bumble Bizz, in October 2017.
“It’s clear that we share a passion for empowering young women around the world,” Wolfe Herd told CNN in an email. “That’s when we started working on a plan to partner and launch Bumble in India.”
Wolfe Herd said the challenge of entering the Indian market is “localizing the experience and attracting women” – an area where Chopra will help.
Chopra’s manager Anjula Acharia is also an investor and adviser. Acharya helped Chopra – already established in India – become famous in the United States. But Acharia has a long history of crossover efforts. She was instrumental in bringing artists like Britney Spears and Lady Gaga to India — a background that could translate to Acharia helping Bumble resonate with local audiences.
Bumble’s native app will be available in Hindi and Hinglish (a mixture of Hindi and English) and will be available on iOS and Android. It will also introduce new safety features before entering the area, which is known for violence against women. In June, India was named the most dangerous country in the world for women.
Wolfe Herd said it would ask Indian women to provide only their initials – no first or last name – and provide new ways to report “bad behavior” in the app.
Bumble already has photo verification and has more than 4,000 content moderators who review photos and profiles.
Before Bumble, Wolfe Herd was an early employee and executive at Tinder, but left the company in 2014 after a lawsuit over sexual harassment and discrimination. The case was eventually resolved.
But tensions between the two dating companies have become increasingly apparent due to public litigation between Bumble and Tinder parent company Match Group.
In March this year, Match Group filed a lawsuit against Bumble, accusing the company of patent infringement and theft of trade secrets. Bumble asked the court last week to dismiss the case.
Separately, Bumble filed a countersuit against Match Group. Bumble argued that Match Group was using the lawsuit to retaliate for failed acquisition talks. Both lawsuits are ongoing.
While Bumble is present in more than 160 countries, India is an important market because of its size. According to a Bain & Company report, India has 390 million Internet users, ranking second after China.