I’m all for online dating, but this kind of seems… I don’t know. Excessive? Questionable? Stupidly expensive? Anyway, the point is that Match.com can now find you matches who look just like your ex — as long as you’re willing to shell out an extra $5,000 for the service.
Hmmmm.
Hmmmmmmmmmm.
According to Newsweek, the online dating site has teamed up with Three Day Rule, a Los Angeles-based “personalized matchmaking service” (whatever that means) in their efforts to help you find new partners who look pretty much the same as your old ones. Three Day Rule is known mostly for its use of facial recognition software; in addition to the standard personality tests and whatnot most matchmaking sites and services use, this facial recognition software allows Three Day Rule to match you with people whose facial structure fits your physical “type,” as well. Said founder Talia Goldstein, “I noticed over the years that people have a type, and it’s not based on ethnicity or hair color or body type. Their faces look very similar. So what I did is introduce that technology on the back end for matchmakers.” Basically, you send in a picture of your ex, and then the software does the rest. Like magic.
Bear in mind that Match.com already costs anywhere from about $20 to around $35 per month, depending on which subscription package you purchase. True, you can join for free — but you can’t do things like send or receive messages, see who’s viewed your profile, or use the Match.com IM client unless you pay up. On the Media reports that the $5K fee for the Match.com/Three Day Rule package covers not only the access to the facial recognition software, but also a six month Match.com membership and a real, live dating coach; even after crunching the numbers, though, it seems expensive: At its priciest, six months of Match.com will set you back $210. Is facial recognition software and a personal dating coach worth the remaining $4,790? For most of us, I’m going to guess the answer is no.
The question I’m sure everyone wants answered, though, is whether it actually works. Alas, I could not guinea pig myself for this one, as I am unwilling to shell out $5,000 to do so. The Washington Post, however, has greater resources than I do, so instead, I’ll sum up for you what they found when they gave it a shot. Caitlin Dewey sent Goldstein photos of three of her male friends and asked her to run them through the Three Day Rule facial recognition program. Goldstein couldn’t compare the photos against her actual user database due to privacy concerns; she was, however, willing to compare them to a database of World Cup player photos. The results are actually pretty impressive. Here's one of 'em; take a look at the rest over at the Washington Post:
That aside, though, there’s also this: While there are undoubtedly physical traits that some people find more attractive than others, I wonder whether it’s really that healthy to actively search for dates who look like someone from a previous relationship — which presumably is one that failed (that’s why you’re exes, right?). For me personally, I would probably find the similarity appearance more of a hindrance than a help; getting the constant reminder of a lost love every time you look at your current partner doesn’t sound like a good time to me. Then again, I suppose everyone gets over their exes in different ways, so if it helps you, then more power to you.
Anyhoo, if you’re totally set on dating people with the same facial structure and have $5,000 to burn, you can opt in to the package when you sign up for Match.com. Let us know how that works out for you — we’d love to see some real-life results.
