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Digital dating reflects massive social change and pressure
January 21, 2013, Monday
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Print Edition
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WANDERING through the main gate of Shanghai's People's Park, visitors might think they have stumbled upon a bustling flea market. Rows of colorful stalls line the walkways, which are crowded with old couples elbowing each other to examine the thousands of offerings.
But the "goods' hawked by the seasoned ladies are not scarves or souvenirs, but rather single men and women.
Welcome to the People's Park "marriage market," where thousands of adults - mostly aging parents - come every day to scan the sea of personal ads, meet with matchmakers and chat up other parents eager to find a partner for their overworked, unwed children.
These marriage markets are a logical extension of the traditional Chinese matchmaking culture, where family elders drive the screening for, and selection of, their childrens' future mates.
At the same time, however, there is an entirely different market in operation, one where millions of exchanges happen daily, and the "shoppers" are the singles themselves. This is the world of Chinese online dating, a nascent industry that has taken off and is expected to break 2 billion yuan (US$318 million) in annual revenue by 2014, according to a recent report by Analysys International.
What is interesting about this industry is not only its rapid growth in a conservative society that frowns upon courting more than one person at a time, but also its potential to change the social norms that are part of dating both online and offline.
That is not to say that online dating has changed the values and criteria of Chinese singles completely.
On the contrary, the primary players in this space - Jiayuan, Zhenai and Baihe - clearly advertise themselves as marriage websites focused on helping singles find their future life partner.
While the mean age of marriage is rising, marriage is still nearly universal among the Chinese. More than 99 percent of women between the ages of 35 and 39 on the Chinese mainland have been married at least once, according to a study by Gavin W. Jones at the Asia Research Institute.
The traditional emphasis on finding a partner with a similar educational pedigree and economic standing is still followed in the digital world.
According to Shang-Hsiu Koo, CFO of Jiayuan, China's largest online matchmaking website, what users value most in a potential match are education level, age, height and legal residence in a top-tier city. Having a residence permit or hukou in a major city is highly desirable because because only those with permits have access to public services and certain employment opportunities in that city.
These personal facts can be found in the profiles hanging in the People's Park marriage market. So, why have so many singles gone online?
According to the United Nations, 2011 marked the first year that the number of people living in Chinese cities exceeded the number living in the countryside.
More people are migrating to cities for economic opportunities since the Chinese government gradually relaxed its control over urban migration.
This trend will continue and the urbanization rate is expected to surpass 60 percent by 2020 and 75 percent by 2045. (More than 82 percent of the US population lives in cities).
While a great deal of research has explored the economic, political and environmental issues that will be affected by increasing urbanization, much less research has examined the social impact of the trend.
In particular, urbanization has uprooted the traditional community-based networks through which people meet their spouses and has thus made it more difficult for Chinese to find mates.
While urbanization opens up economic opportunities for these individuals, it simultaneously closes social outlets, making online dating networks increasingly important in the search for a potential partner.
Despite their impressive growth and attributes, the major Chinese online dating services, such as Jiayuan, face two major business challenges.
First, the online dating service industry in China is fragmented. The second challenge is building trust with users. The number of cases of fraud has increased in online dating websites.
This article was adapted from China Knowlege@Wharton, http://www.knowledgeatwharton.com.cn. To read the original version, please visit: http://www.knowledgeatwharton.com.cn/index.cfm?fa=article&articleid=2726. Published 2013.01.04
But the "goods' hawked by the seasoned ladies are not scarves or souvenirs, but rather single men and women.
Welcome to the People's Park "marriage market," where thousands of adults - mostly aging parents - come every day to scan the sea of personal ads, meet with matchmakers and chat up other parents eager to find a partner for their overworked, unwed children.
These marriage markets are a logical extension of the traditional Chinese matchmaking culture, where family elders drive the screening for, and selection of, their childrens' future mates.
At the same time, however, there is an entirely different market in operation, one where millions of exchanges happen daily, and the "shoppers" are the singles themselves. This is the world of Chinese online dating, a nascent industry that has taken off and is expected to break 2 billion yuan (US$318 million) in annual revenue by 2014, according to a recent report by Analysys International.
What is interesting about this industry is not only its rapid growth in a conservative society that frowns upon courting more than one person at a time, but also its potential to change the social norms that are part of dating both online and offline.
That is not to say that online dating has changed the values and criteria of Chinese singles completely.
On the contrary, the primary players in this space - Jiayuan, Zhenai and Baihe - clearly advertise themselves as marriage websites focused on helping singles find their future life partner.
While the mean age of marriage is rising, marriage is still nearly universal among the Chinese. More than 99 percent of women between the ages of 35 and 39 on the Chinese mainland have been married at least once, according to a study by Gavin W. Jones at the Asia Research Institute.
The traditional emphasis on finding a partner with a similar educational pedigree and economic standing is still followed in the digital world.
According to Shang-Hsiu Koo, CFO of Jiayuan, China's largest online matchmaking website, what users value most in a potential match are education level, age, height and legal residence in a top-tier city. Having a residence permit or hukou in a major city is highly desirable because because only those with permits have access to public services and certain employment opportunities in that city.
These personal facts can be found in the profiles hanging in the People's Park marriage market. So, why have so many singles gone online?
According to the United Nations, 2011 marked the first year that the number of people living in Chinese cities exceeded the number living in the countryside.
More people are migrating to cities for economic opportunities since the Chinese government gradually relaxed its control over urban migration.
This trend will continue and the urbanization rate is expected to surpass 60 percent by 2020 and 75 percent by 2045. (More than 82 percent of the US population lives in cities).
While a great deal of research has explored the economic, political and environmental issues that will be affected by increasing urbanization, much less research has examined the social impact of the trend.
In particular, urbanization has uprooted the traditional community-based networks through which people meet their spouses and has thus made it more difficult for Chinese to find mates.
While urbanization opens up economic opportunities for these individuals, it simultaneously closes social outlets, making online dating networks increasingly important in the search for a potential partner.
Despite their impressive growth and attributes, the major Chinese online dating services, such as Jiayuan, face two major business challenges.
First, the online dating service industry in China is fragmented. The second challenge is building trust with users. The number of cases of fraud has increased in online dating websites.
This article was adapted from China Knowlege@Wharton, http://www.knowledgeatwharton.com.cn. To read the original version, please visit: http://www.knowledgeatwharton.com.cn/index.cfm?fa=article&articleid=2726. Published 2013.01.04
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