In 2008, eHarmony responded to complaints that it wasn’t serving gay and lesbian customers by setting up a second website, Compatible Partners, and keeping those customers separate from the official site. Some users sued the company, saying anyone with bisexual interests were being forced to pay twice for the same service. Now eHarmony has settled the class action and will allow members of either site to participate on the other one without having to pay a second time.

As with pretty much every class action that’s settled, the bulk of the settlement amount goes to legal fees. Only $500,000 will be set aside for claims by the class, but because the class is fairly small that should work out to about $4,000 per person, says the Los Angeles Times.

My dating advice: whether you’re on eHarmony or Compatible Partners, start looking for people who express an interest in litigation and bisexuality. If the settlement is approved, chances are those people are going to have a little extra spending cash pretty soon.

“Sued Into Submission, eHarmony Now Swings Both Ways” [LA Weekly]
“eHarmony settles lawsuit over same-sex matching” [Reuters]

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