To make a profit, dating apps must leverage data differently

Companies such as dating sites often rely on a freemium model, through which they grant users access to premium, usually paid features in return for customer referrals. The problem is that can result in having a large number of low-paying customers who do not sign up for the premium features. A large-scale study at one dating website suggests that carefully managing the threshold for the number of referrals needed in order for referring customers to access the premium features can not only increase the number of customers in the network, but also generate more profitable ones