Read this article. As far as I'm concerned, MONEY IN THE BANK.
Cheers,
Blake
Wednesday February 2, 9:35 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
BlindGift.com Valentine's Day Survey
Reveals Internet Friendships Are
Becoming More Commonplace
55 percent of respondents have friends that they
know exclusively online
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 2, 2000--Having received more than 9,000
responses from online users, BlindGift.com today announced the results of its first online Valentine's
Day survey, designed to gauge the scope and significance of online friendships and dating.
Among the respondents, 55 percent reported they have friends that they know only through Internet
chatting and e-mail, and among this group, 75 percent said they considered their online friends to be
just as important as their offline friends.
BlindGift.com conducted its Valentine's Day survey during the week of Jan. 21, 2000, with
approximately 60,000 BlindGift.com members receiving the online survey. For additional survey
results, visit BlindGift.com's survey page at blindgift.com.
Interestingly, while most respondents indicated they were still more likely to look for love in the
offline world, one-fifth reported that Internet dating was a useful avenue for finding romance. And as
this Valentine's Day draws near, most are planning on buying a gift for their sweetheart, with candy,
stuffed animals and flowers taking the top spots among preferred gifts. Most respondents plan to
spend around $50 on the holiday, and almost half plan to spend some of that online.
``We're not surprised by the large and growing number of Internet users who have serious online
friendships,' said Rob Hansen, BlindGift.com CEO. ``When we started BlindGift.com, our goal was
to further blur the line between the Internet and the real world. We now provide a fun and easy way
for people to exchange gifts with Internet friends. With the increased penetration of the Internet,
we're seeing a real shift in how people meet and make friends, and I won't be surprised next year to
see an even larger percentage of Internet users making online friends, as well as increased numbers
going online for romance.'
Besides sponsoring the survey, BlindGift.com is also currently running a Valentine's Day sweepstakes
with a grand prize of an all-expense paid trip to Las Vegas for two. Each time a user sends a gift
using BlindGift.com, they're entered to win. Additionally, for each order over $25, the sender can
send a free seven-inch tall brown bear to the person of their choosing.
BlindGift.com offers a Web-based service that allows Internet users to select a gift from any
BlindGift.com merchant partner, and then send it to a friend using only the recipient's e-mail address.
The recipient receives an e-mail from BlindGift.com stating a gift is waiting for them and then gives
them the option of accepting or declining the gift.
About BlindGift.com
Founded in 1999, BlindGift.com is the first service that enables Internet users to enhance their online
relationships by sending gifts without needing private contact information. With the patent-pending
BlindGift system, gifts can be sent and received using only e-mail addresses. Founded by a team of
entrepreneurs and experts from the Internet gift and e-commerce sectors, BlindGift.com is a privately
held company, with seed funding from SAP Ventures, the venture arm of SAP AG (NYSE
ADR:SAP) and private investors. It has partner agreements with a number of online merchants
including Shari's Berries (www.berries.com), flowersandgifts.com, Artisangifts.com, ebear.com,
GourmetMarket.com, pacifictime.com, GiveChocolate.com and ThePinConnection.com. The
company headquarters are located at 777 Tehama Street, San Francisco, California 94103. For
more information, visit www.blindgift.com, e-mail info@blindgift.com or telephone (415) 762-2083.
Contact:
Davis.Comm Inc. (for BlindGift.com)
Peter Epstein, 415/837-3939
pepstein@daviscomm.com
or
BlindGift.com
Vanessa Torres, 415/762-2083 x852
torres@blindgift.com |
