Match.com Can Use Pictures of Your Ex to Find You a Date

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Image: Flickr, Mait Juriado

By Samantha Murphy Kelly2014-06-10 17:13:05 UTC

You might say you're looking for a potential mate that looks like George Clooney or Scarlett Johansson, but chances are you do have a "type" and it looks a lot like your ex.

Building on this concept, popular dating site Match.com is adding facial-recognition technology to its matchmaking process. If you upgrade to the site's premium service, you'll be able to send photos of your ex to help the company better determine the type of look you're attracted to.

See also: How Online Dating Sites Use Data to Find 'The One'

"People have a type and it's not necessarily about height or race or hair color, but a lot of it is about face shape," a Match spokesperson told Mashable.

To offer this to users, Match is partnering with Los Angeles-based matchmaking service Three Day Rule, which uses facial recognition algorithms to pair people together.

But the option is only offered to Match's premium users, who spend $5,000 for a six-month package. This is typically a small demographic of high-end users who don't have time to find dates. Premium members are assigned professional matchmakers, who coach the client, fly out to meet with them, get to know their preferences and even go on pre-dates with potential mates as to not waste the Match member's time. (The matches come directly from Match's database or the matchmaker's personal network.)

Now, matchmakers will ask for pictures of premium member's ex-girlfriends or boyfriends to better gauge the face shape its clients like most.

"I've noticed over my years in matchmaking that people have types," Talia Goldstein, the founder of Three Day Rule, told Mashable. "I always ask my clients to send me photos of their exes. They say that they don't have a type, but when I see the photos, to me they look very similar. The ex's may be different ethnicities, or have different hair color, but their facial structures are the same."

Facial structure will be factored in to what matchmaker's are looking for to pair up their clients, in addition to personality and interests.

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Topics: Apps and Software, Match, Match.com, online dating, Small Business, Startups, Tech, Work & Play