How Big Data is Affecting Online Dating in China

Finding a spouse can be a difficult challenge these days. Dating just isnt what it used to be, which is why so many people can get easily frustrated by the experience. Nowhere is this felt more than in China, where even though there are hundreds of millions of single people looking for the right one, success in the dating world can be tough to come by.

Like in the United States and other places around the world, many people in China have turned to online dating sites, hoping to finally find their perfect match. The success rates have been impressive as the number of dating site users has increased. As far as the U.S. is concerned, roughly a fourth to a third of all marriages are now a result of people meeting online, and China is hoping to see similar results. For online dating sites, this level of success is due to one major ingredient: big data analytics.

Perhaps it shouldnt come as a surprise that data plays such an important role for online dating. After all, participants have to input lots of information about themselves, often filling out surveys and questionnaires that give the sites a better picture of who each individual is. This information is quantified in the form of data, and with the use of big data platforms and tools like Apache Spark, online dating businesses can then determine which person matches well with others. The full depth of this analysis largely depends on the site, but many businesses boast of their expertise in hooking people up with those who are very much like each other.

What this all comes down to is behavioral analysis, not unlike how the average online business uses big data to recommend certain products, features, and services based on preferences. The same approach has been used in the U.S. and is being put to use in China.

Many online dating sites in China go beyond the usual analysis of traits, personalities, personal beliefs, values, and other factors. Some sites even go as far as to take socio-economic status into account, analyzing credit ratings and spending behaviors to match people up more effectively.

Some dating businesses even collect users data from wearable devices, leading to more information about exercise patterns, caloric intake, and places they go most often to get in shape. While still theoretical, there has even been some discussion of alerting people via their wearables or smartphones when they are in close proximity to a match. These examples show one principle many online dating businesses are being guided by — mainly that with more data at their disposal, the more precise the matches will be, which will lead to a higher chance of success.

In a sense, this is a natural evolution for the dating world in China. Traditionally, people would find their spouses through matchmaking services usually set up by family and friends, but distrust has grown in recent years over this method. Many Chinese, especially the younger generations, have wanted a greater say in the matchmaking process and more freedom over who they choose to date. Online dating sites and big data analytics have not only allowed people more choice in the matter, but it has also increased the pool of potential date partners.

The future of online dating in China is one full of questions. Right now, the trend seems to point toward more and more people signing up for the service. There also seems to be a greater push for even more big data use. Some sites in the U.S., for example, actually use facial recognition technology as part of the process. They look at facial patterns of previous partners and use that information to find others with similar features. The technology and service is expensive, but it may come to China one day soon.

Many have expressed skepticism about using big data as a selling point for online dating sites. Some point to increased success as only a result of dating from a larger pool of people. Others say boiling down human wants and desires to cold hard data is the wrong way to try to match up people. In any case, its clear online dating is taking off, in part thanks to big data.

The billion dollar industry doesnt appear to be slowing down any time soon, and with big data analytics growing more and more advanced, finding the right match might become easier than ever.