Ne Spotify apps Tastebuds and Fellody play matchmaker

(EndPlay Staff Reports) - A pair of new Spotify apps could save you the hassle, expense and embarrassment of a lousy first date.

Tastebuds and Fellody plug into users' musical tastes and provide matches based on their personalized playlists.

With Tastebuds, a potential match is made by assessing which artists Spotify users have listened to the most. Users can also send messages to their matches in real-time and share playlists with them directly.

Fellody lets users drag and drop their playlists before they search for matches. Users can then find friends and potential love interests based on the highest match rate.

Both apps allow their users to filter results based on gender, age and location, reported The Los Angeles Times .

"Spotify and Tastebuds both believe that music is the most effective way of connecting people," Alex Parish, co-founder of Tastebuds, said in The Times. "In fact, we've found that you're far more likely to get a response to a message you send on Tastebuds than any other dating site – 43 percent of first messages get a reply."

The potential is huge. Billboard reported that the online dating industry generates more than $1 billion in revenue each year.

Billboard said it expects Spotify to grab a share of that market. If nothing else, Spotify will get more listeners, which it obviously wants.

"Your taste in music is one of the most common topics of conversation when meeting someone, whether they are a date or just a new friend, and it's hugely important to have compatible tastes," Sten Garmark, director of platform at Spotify, said in the Times.