Blued (app)

Blued
Original author(s) Geng Le
Initial release 2012 (2012)
Stable release
2.0.1 / January 23, 2017
Operating system iOS and Android
Available in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese
Type Social network
Website Blued.com

Blued is currently the largest gay social network app in the world.[1] Launched in 2012, the free app now counts 27 million users with the majority still in its country of origin, China. The application is available on Android and iOS.[2] Its features include verified profiles, live broadcasting, a timeline, and group conversations. The app is currently valued at $600 million.[3]

History

For 12 years, Geng Le (aka Ma Baoli), a married police officer in northern China, runs in secret Danlan.org, a website for gay people. In 2012, when his superiors discover the website, Geng Le loses his family and job. Committed to make the legitimisation of same-sex relationships in China, his life’s work, he creates Blued, the first gay social network app.

Today, Blued employs over 200 staff at its headquarters in Beijing, China, and has recently opened new offices in London, UK to overview the rapid expansion of the app overseas. In 4 years only, Blued has become the largest gay social network in the world with over 27 million registered users.[3][4]

Commenting on the global partnership between Blued and Hornet, Hornet president Sean Howell declared: “Gay apps have evolved over the past few years to more fully engage users, who demand a richer, mobile experience”.[5][6]

Features

Verified Profile – Profiles showing a yellow tick have been manually authenticated as genuine profiles by Blued's moderation team. The moderation team carefully compares a 10-seconds in-app recorded video against the uploaded profile picture in order to determine whether said picture is genuinely that of the person using the user account.

Live – Live is trending all around the internet. Blued gives its users the ability to go Live within a community of peers and to show what life is like around them. All users have the opportunity to partake and create their community of followers or even fans. Live streaming are monitored 24/7 to encourage a positive and fun experience.

Feed – Users can scroll through an endless stream of photos or videos posted by guys they have chosen to follow. The feed can also show posts nearby or trending posts from around the world.

Grid – A grid displays nearby profiles by distance and either follow those profiles or engage in one-to-one conversations. Filters are available to users to ensure a more appealing selection of profiles for everyone.

Groups – Group conversations are available for users to join depending on their interests or location. Many get togethers are organised and hot topics discussed on a daily basis.[7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Social app Blued's beta version has reached the UK". December 21, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Blued - Official Website (EN)".
  3. 1 2 Hernández, J.C. (December 16, 2016). "Building a Community, and an Empire, With a Gay Dating App in China". New York Times. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Blued - Official Website (CN)". Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  5. ↑ McCormick, Joseph Patrick (December 18, 2016). "Gay dating apps Hornet and Blued enter global partnership". Retrieved December 22, 2016 – via pinknews.co.uk.
  6. ↑ "Hornet and Blued, Enter Into First Global Cooperation". December 16, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Blued - Gay Social,Live Broadcasting,Gay Community". December 20, 2016.
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