London - Half of couples will meet online within 20 years, according to a study.
By 2031, 38 percent of couples will find love through an online dating or matchmaking service while a further 12 percent will meet via other websites, say researchers.
The study, commissioned, unsurprisingly, by an online dating website, claims that 70 percent of couples will be able to thank either online dating or online communication for their relationship by 2040.
The proportion of relationships that start at work, school or university is declining rapidly, falling from 18 percent to 12 percent since 2007.
But over the past decade, the number of couples finding love online has more than trebled as access to the internet has become easier, the study says.
At present, couples in the South East (22 percent) and East of England (20 percent) are the most likely to have met online, while by 2030 the fastest expected growth in online dating will be in London.
The number of single 55- to 64-year-olds is forecast to rise from 1.87 million to 2.41million by 2030 and the biggest online dating boom is expected to be in this age group.
The stigma that attached to online dating has reduced in recent years. More than half of online daters now use a smartphone to interact with their online dating service, and one in three use a tablet, according to eHarmony, which commissioned the study.
Romain Bertrand, its marketing director, said: “In the decades to come, online dating will not only be an efficient way to meet a partner, but will be by far and away the most common way that couples meet and initially communicate.” - Daily Mail