Gong Haiyan, founder of Jiayuan.com, poses for a photo next to her company poster at her Beijing office.
`I’m still looking for the true love of my life. Every time I post something attractive on my personal page, I receive many invitations to get to know each other. Now I realize that it’s not so difficult.`
NetEase Huatian’s online dating system began operating last November, and the test version is in operation in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Guangzhou and
With a series of newly established matchmaking websites, more and more Chinese people are turning to online dating as it allows them to quickly find their ideal type.
`I have more and more options every day. This also helps me feel more relaxed. NetEase Huatian is very suitable for young people. Compared to many other websites, this system is completely free, and I don’t feel like
Like many other people, she often posts personal photos, writes a diary, and looks for guys who are compatible with her.
`Even if I don’t find the right person, I can still consider them friends,` she said.
In December 2012, Jiayuan.com, another matchmaking website, cooperated with the National Population and Family Planning Commission and released the 2012-2013 Report on Marriage Values in
Accordingly, 249 million Chinese youth over the age of 18 are unmarried, and gender inequality is turning men into the main subjects of single life.
According to Wan Qi, product manager of NetEase Huatian, the criteria for choosing a life partner for most young people today is not only based on salary or personal wealth, but also involves compatibility and views on relationships.
Guo Mengmeng, 25, from Beijing, met the guy of her dreams in January 2012 through the website Jiayuan.com, and married him four months later.
Jiayuan currently has more than 73 million members and every day more than 7,000 people change their marital status from single to `dating` or `married`.
`I was intrigued by his personal information, from his introduction to his portrait photos. So, I decided to send him a letter to get to know him. We shared things together.
`They don’t make me feel pressured like what I have to go through from secret appointments arranged by my family. Furthermore, they are very flexible as I can surf the internet in my free time and learn about the lake.`
`Sometimes I also receive some messages that are quite funny and stupid, simply because many young men don’t know how to talk to girls,` Zhang said.
She thinks these sites should train guys how to have engaging conversations.
Liu Fengqin, director of psychology at The Maple Women’s Psychology Consulting Center in Beijing, said face-to-face meetings are still very important.
`Online communication is all about words, but a marriage needs more than that,` she said.
According to Zhou Zhongxia, deputy director of Jiayuan, `online dating through online websites, with the ability to make friends very simply, is constantly growing. Therefore, there is a need for more online services.`
`We are also actively organizing face-to-face exchange activities, such as providing cheap movie tickets, to help couples get closer to each other. But it seems that young people want to date freely,
Quynh Hoa (According to China Daily)
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