Watch CBS News

Facebook To Launch New Dating Service: 'Not Just Hookups'

SAN JOSE (CBSLA/CBS News) -- Facebook will roll out a series of features around dating, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Tuesday.

"I can't tell you how many times I'll be walking down the street in some city and a couple will come up to me and say that they met on Facebook," Zuckerberg said at the company's developer's conference, called F8. "But the reality is, today, we haven't even built any features to help people find partners."

He gave few details, but said the service will be optional, not viewable to users' friends, and will only suggest partners who are outside someone's friend group.

"This will be focused on long-term relationships, not just hookups," Zuckerberg said.

Zuckerberg noted that 200 million people on Facebook are listed as single, and that 1 in 3 marriages in the U.S. start online. (This is true of recent marriages, according to a 2013 study.)

News of the social network's new dating venture sent shares of online dating site Match Group tumbling as much as 19 percent after Zuckerberg announced the feature.

Zuckerberg announced several other new Facebook initiatives as well, including one called "Clear History," a tool that will allow users to see what apps and websites share information with Facebook and delete this information from their account. Get live updates from F8.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc.. All Rights Reserved.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.