A 21 st Century Love Revolution as Cupid Strikes Online http://www.flickr.com/photos/80039525@N00/2967908707/ (maubrowncow)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25776592@N02/2752476205/ (suchitra prints) A Cyberspace Love Revolution, “Romance is not dead – it’s just gone online! ” (Jean Smith – Relationship Expert)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/10565597@N00/2871346522/ (Always Be CoOL) “ 21 st century love has found its home in the digital world with 66% of people admitting they would rather ‘type it than talk it’ on Instant Messenger (IM) this Valentine’s Day”

“ Cupid’s arrow is set to miss 13 million Europeans (5%) who cannot afford to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year, a further 1 in 10 will be forced to make cutbacks as households rein in their spending” http://www.flickr.com/photos/44124426342@N01/2122033483/ (piermario)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/71477195@N00/235854156/ (marie-II) “ While 82% of people claim they never argue about money, 1 in 10 (11%) have recently broken up or gotten divorced due to financial pressures and 8% are seeking debt counselling”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/44124367235@N01/2828086856/ (Kevin Lawver) “ Over 67 million people (33%) across Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) have found love on the internet with 5 million relationships (7%) leading to marriage and a further 19 million (28%) resulting in long-term partnerships”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/87724873@N00/531590711/ (klynslis) “ Spending will fall by almost 10% on the previous year across EMEA - decreasing from an average of €75 spent per person to €68. Hardest hit will be Spain, with a 45% drop in expenditure, followed by Israel (-22%) and Italy (-18%)”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36521964938@N01/491308304/ (Alx) “ More than half (55%) of Europeans have used IM to flirt with someone. Instant flirting by Messenger is particularly prolific in Northern European countries like Norway (84%), Netherlands (82%) and Sweden (71%). While Arabia (35%), Belgium (36%), Spain (39%) and Italy (42%) are the least ‘virtually flirtatious’.”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/54058921@N00/2101006917/ (jon|k) “ The majority of people across Europe (66%) admit that they find it easier to flirt over IM than face-to-face. Saying ‘I Love You’ for the first time is never easy, so it comes as no surprise that 1 in 3 have actively declared their love for someone over IM rather than face-to-face.”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53611153@N00/470473931/ (Darwin Bell) About the survey The survey conducted by Microsoft’s Windows Live Group across 16 countries in Europe, Middle East and Africa, explores the experiences and attitudes of over 78,000 people and highlights some of the online dating and flirting techniques of the 21 st Century. These are some of the key findings, more details on my blog: http://crossthebreeze.com/2009/02/11/a-survey-about-lovea-survey-about-love/