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Be2

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be2
Company typeLLC
Founded2004
Headquarters
Armenia Edit this on Wikidata
Ownerbe2 LLC
Websitebe2.com

This company is a fraud. Check on-line for further information. Have nothing to do with them whatsoever. Everything written below is complete lies and should not be believed. BE AWARE AND DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY OR YOUR HEART FALLING FOR THIS SCAM. They currently "cite 32,368,675 registered members worldwide!" most normal people would find this a ridiculous number of on-line 'daters' and once again shows how fraudulent this site is. WALK AWAY FROM IT NOW... [signed: Cate Lamberton, wary consumer]

History

be2 was originally founded as a German matchmaking service in 2004 by online entrepreneur Robert Wuttke. The German Service went live on April 1, 2004.[1] The same year, the Spanish and Italian service were added. Since its foundation, be2 has expanded rapidly, mainly through a strategy of internationalisation.[2]

Facts

be2 has almost 30 million registered members worldwide.[3] However, it remains unclear how many of these members are active and how many have a Premium membership. According to company data,[4] the male-to-female ratio is balanced, with a slight surplus of women (57%). be2 conducts surveys among its members and publishes the results.[5]

Methodology

The be2 matchmaking system is based on a scientifically developed personality test.[6] User profiles are compared to profiles from the database according to a matching algorithm. Psychological, anthropological and sociological criteria derived from the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator are employed to determine a suitable partner according to the results of the personality test.[7] This business model specifically targets singles over 30 looking for a serious relationship.[8] According to members, who are asked for their reason for cancellation when unsubscribing from the Premium Membership, the success rate is 40%.[9]

Membership

The registration, personality test and the basic matchmaking service are free of charge.

In order to write messages and see other members’ profile photos, members need to purchase a Premium Membership.

Criticism

The pricing of Premium Memberships are a regular cause for complaint.[10]

The automatic renewal of Premium Memberships has also been criticised. The membership is, in fact, a subscription, which is automatically renewed, unless the membership is cancelled in due time.[11] However, it is not possible to cancel the subscription because there is no email link on the site or fax number. Although the online address makes the company appear to be registered in the UK (be2.co.uk), it is actually based in Luxenbourg. For this reason the company has managed to get away with taking money out of subscribers' bank accounts without their consent and make cancellations of memberships nearly impossible to achieve.[12]

In Denmark, the journalist Troels Jørgensen from TV station DR has rated BE2's matching system as flawed. Wildly different profiles were matched to exactly the same potential partners in a test performed for consumer rights programme Kontant. Also, membership is extended without consent which is illegal according to The Danish Consumer Council. [13] All the questions raised by the Danish journalist in the programme have since been addressed by the company. be2 made several changes to its service in Denmark in response to the programme. [citation needed]

International

Internationally, be2 is active in 37 countries on all continents, in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Denmark, France, Finland, Great Britain, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Canada, Croatia, Colombia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Taiwan, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Venezuela, USA[citation needed]

References

  1. ^ http://www.ftd.de/karriere-management/management/:enable-warum-in-die-ferne-schweifen/294783.html IT-development for be2, Financial Times Deutschland
  2. ^ http://www.onlinepersonalswatch.com/news/2008/12/robert-wuttke-be2-ceo-and-founder-interview.html Online Personals Watch Interview
  3. ^ http://www.be2.com/ be2 Homepage
  4. ^ http://corporate.be2.com/ corporate page
  5. ^ http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/a-new-be2couk-survey-50-of-those-registered-on-dating-sites-are-ashamed-160497315.html be2.co.uk Survey: 50% of Those Registered on Dating Sites are Ashamed!
  6. ^ http://www.indexventures.com/news/index/news_id/203#news/index/news_id/204 Index Ventures describes the be2 matchmaking model
  7. ^ http://www.astramatch.com/blog/2009/02/relationships/review-of-be2-relationship-assessment/ Review of be2 relationship assessment
  8. ^ http://eu.techcrunch.com//2008/11/13/algorithm-driven-dating-site-be2-raises-e15m-from-index/ Techcrunch on the be2 business model
  9. ^ http://www.be2.com/tourpage/page1 be2 Homepage
  10. ^ http://onlinedatingpost.com/archives/2008/11/be2-raises-e15-million/
  11. ^ http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/oct/10/be2-online-dating
  12. ^ http://onlinedatingpost.com/archives/2008/11/be2-raises-e15-million/
  13. ^ http://fpn.dk/rettigheder/markedsforing/article2317580.ece
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