Next generation dating – welcome to location-based GPS hook-up apps

Many years ago, way back in the eighties when I was still young, free and single, the only medium available to meet members of the fairer sex in a similar predicament were the personal ads that could be found in newspapers and magazines.

In the nineties, the stigma associated with meeting potential partners this way receded – indeed, a couple I know that met this way flaunted the fact by printing the advertisement that led to their union on their wedding invitations!
Then, along came the internet. By now, I was “hooked-up” and did not need the services of such sites – but they always struck me as ideal vehicle to do so if I did.

According to a recent study which pulled data from a number of sources including Reuters and The Washington Post, online dating is now worth more than one billion dollars per year. The same study claims that it even eclipses the revenues generated by online porn, and estimates the mobile dating market to be worth some $550m.
An unlikely ambassador to extol the virtues of next-gen mobile dating was the British actor Stephen Fry who British mentioned the geo-social networking app Grindr on the popular TV show Top Gear. Popular with gays, Grindr makes use of the device geolocation, which allows users to access other gay and bisexual men within close proximity.

Not surprisingly, a number of other companies are lining up to become the ‘straight’ equivalent. Of these, www.PinPointsX.com are way ahead of the pack, and have already been named #1 hoop-up app my AskMen.com and have received rave reviews from CNET, LA Times, The Huffington Post and others.

A location-aware adult social network, www.PinPointsX.com provides users with an interactive “passion map” of either their current or chosen location. The map displays private people and their sexual orientation, and adult businesses and nightlife. The user can then interact with any of these entities, using calls/messaging/emails. If the other party is online they can chat or talk, and if not, they receive an email notification. In other words, no matter where you go - the map conveniently serves the entire sexual scene around the users’ current location.

The added value of the PinPointsX.com platform over other adult social networks is that it relies greatly on the users’ location and presents all of the adult nightlife options within an immediate area. One of the more important addition is the Apple approved PPX to-go™ available in the Apple app store and in the Android Market. The app uses GPS and other location functionality on the phone or iPod to automatically update the user's location and presents new erotic options wherever he or she goes.

I just wish this technology had been around all those years ago when I was on the open market!