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A trend now in China as relationships could become virtual and instant, easy like buying colorful candies at 7-11. A lonely man or a woman going through a recent breakup may forget their pain by signing up for a 24-hour virtual relationship through China’s Amazon-like webpage called Taobao. However, love appears to come with a price. Some people are willing to pay $3 per day even with no refund policy for a little bit of happiness to warm their cold hearts.
Subscribers may worry about compatibility but upon registration, they have the privilege to choose their ideal “lover” such as the “doll-like, mature, comforting, funny, understanding, etc.” man or woman that suits their preference. Need not worry about talking to robots since they guarantee the service includes “wake-up calls, text and voice messages, phone calls and goodnight wishes” as assurance for not talking to programmed systems or cyborgs but real actual persons.
The other party who are paid to become the “boy/girlfriend” may set rules like forbidding to ask personal information, pictures, numbers or video calls. Various feedback come from subscribers who have tried the online relationship express positive and negative views on the service. Responses like good companionship or in some instances, comparison with real demanding girlfriends as opposed to the understanding women online. Whereas, complains about gap in ages or maturity level lack topics for conversation.
Either from loneliness or curiousity, effective or not, it seems to be a growing market in the business world. Some people see potential if the “boy/girlfriend” can be more sensitive to the subscribers’ feelings. Friendship nowadays can be found online and love through this method, on the other hand can keep people from searching for the real one because of the illusion of having someone in an instant.
