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Internet is matchmaker of choice for many singles


Match.com says its service has led to more than 1,400 marriages.

(CNN) -- If you're looking for a mate before Valentine's Day, love may just be a mouse click away.

While Internet stocks have tanked, some online dating sites have reported increased usage, especially since the September 11 terrorist attacks.

The Web site Match.com reported that in the two months after the September 11 attacks, its membership increased 70 percent. Other dating sites have reported similar results.

Other dating sites noticed a similar pattern. Matchmaker.com and uDate.com also reported increased traffic in the days and months after the attacks.

A sociologist says that is not surprising in times of uncertainty.

"Even if it doesn't happen to you, it reminds you that you don't even want to watch the news without that special someone" at your side, sociologist Pepper Schwartz, a professor at the University of Washington in Seattle. "So I believe the services have been used more."

Match.com claims its service has led to more than 1,400 marriages, 75 children and hundreds of thousands of relationships.

If you have specialized dating requirements, there's likely a site to suit your needs. There are matchmaking services for singles over 50, Jewish singles, African-American singles, singles with master's degrees, singles who love animals and singles who are in the health care profession (Date A Doc.com).


Kiss.com keeps identities and contact information confidential unless users decide to reveal it themselves.

Many sites allow users to define their ideal mates with any number of variables, including age, location, height, gender, education, smoking tendencies, ethnicity and even income.

And if a previous study is any indication, dating sites -- along with sites specializing in flowers, gifts, greetings, cosmetics and e-cards -- will see increased traffic before Valentine's Day.

A Jupiter Media Metrix study conducted in January 2001 showed large increases in traffic to sites like Match.com, 1-800-Flowers.com, RedEnvelope.com, VictoriasSecret.com, AmericanGreetings.com and Hallmark.com.

Trial and error

Doug Wyllie began searching for love online last September, and it soon became obvious to him that more men than women were hitting their keyboards for a date.

"I don't make a lot of money and I don't have any power per se, so it makes it very tricky," he said. "But it's fun to meet new people."

The Jupiter Media Metrix study confirms Wylie's suspicions. The study found that men dominated personal sites, comprising 58 percent of the audience in January 2001. But at romance-related sites, like TheKnot.com, women were the larger audience.

Some women find looking for Mr. Right on the Internet just a little scary.

Faith Sedline says that even though she thought the greatest danger in online dating was getting carpal tunnel syndrome, she still gets butterflies now and then.


The Jewish singles site Jdate.com says the majority of its members have professional degrees and household incomes exceeding $60,000 year.

"You don't know who's going to walk up and you're thinking, 'Oh, what did I just do? Why am I doing this?' But that fades pretty quickly."

Kiss.com notes that a user's real identity and contact information are never disclosed to anyone unless the user decides to do so.

Although many sites charge a fee to use their services, they say it's still a bargain. Jdate.com, a site for Jewish singles, which charges $28.50 for a month or $68.50 for three months, argues that users can contact 1,000 "potential soul mates" for a relatively low cost.

Some worry about the stigma of using the computer to find a companion.

"When I cop to online dating, their first reaction is, 'Oh, you can't get a date!" Sedlin said. "But you know, I just thought it would be fun. You get to meet a lot of people."

CNN Correspondent Rusty Dornin contributed to this report.

Related sites

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Match.com
Matchmaker.com
Udate.com
Date-a-doc.com
Kiss.com
1-800-flowers.com
Red envelope.com
Victoria's secret
American Greetings
Hallmark
Jdate.com