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Online dating proves it's built to last |
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Written by Brian Austin
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Tuesday, 05 July 2005 |
 Of the numerous "new media" promises made during the dot-com era, few
ever delivered what had been promised. Still there were a few
that did make good on the promise of "this time it's different".
One in particular is the success of relative latecomer online
dating. Early on, detractors were quick to call it out as simply
an online meat market, or at best a meet-and-greet hookup
service. And while some have specialized in that, others have
managed to not only help people meet each other, but to start lasting
relationships.
While the world cyber dating has brought matchmaking into the 21st
century, human behavior still remains set in the ways of the
past. A recent article by the NY Times points out that Thin
and Rich Works Here when it comes to online dating.
But the author is quick to point out that just because your not a
perfect 10 doesn't mean you won't receive any responses. One key
they cite is actually having a picture. I guess first impressions
do count for something, and research has concluded that both men and
women receive more responses.
I've known a few people who have tried the online dating thing, and at
least two of them have already ended up hitched. What this tells
me is that online dating is less of a "hook up" outlet, and more the
domain of serious adults trying to find long lasting
relationships. And it makes sense. After the tech fallout,
some experts speculated that it was the act of bringing people together
that really set the Internet apart. Some predicted that a new
kind of startup, one modeled around human relationships would become
the new paradigm. For the most part they were right. Clearly
online dating has surpassed even social networking, which often times
appears to be more of a phone directory than any sort of organized
networking tool.
It would seem that so far, the promise of better relationships and more
second dates is holding true. What will be interesting is if
these relationships develop into long lasting ones that can stand the
test of time. I'm sure someone; somewhere is already collecting
data trying to correlate divorce rates among online daters vs. the rest
of the population. Until such time as this information becomes
available, we'll just have to take this industry at its word. And
besides, it beats sitting at home alone every night.
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