Swap in the Name of Love is an ABCNews article that seems to think that ‘Friendster uses “peer-to-peer” technology to connect members to each based on their own personal profiles and those of people they know online.’ I don’t think ABC knows what P2P is…

Swap in the Name of Love
Network Connects Members Based on Who They Know Online

By Lindsey Arent, Tech Live

June 18- Online dating can be a scary proposition.

[img inset with: Friendster uses “peer-to-peer” technology to connect members to each based on their own personal profiles and those of people they know online. (PhotoDisc)]

But what if your friends were online with you, holding your hand as you shopped for a mate? That’s the goal of a new online dating and social “peer-to-peer” service called Friendster.

“I thought, ‘Everybody’s using these [online matchmaking] services, and yet they’re kind of creepy. What if there was a Web site where you could meet people through your friends?'” Friendster founder and CEO Jonathan Abrams says.

Getting Hooked Up

Most dating sites throw millions of incompatible singles together in a single online mosh pit, but Friendster only lets people who are friends of friends see each other’s profiles.

All you have to do is log on to the site, www.friendster.com, and fill out a questionnaire. The form asks you about your likes and dislikes, what you’re looking for (a friend, a date, an activity partner), your marital status, your interests, and your favorite movies, TV shows, and books.

Then you’re ready to invite your friends into your network. Every time someone accepts your invitation to be your friend, you automatically get access to their friends’ profiles. And it can mushroom from there.

Tech entrepreneur Ken Berger says he’s amazed by how his network of connections exploded from an initial list of 35 friends. “I’ve only been actively involved [with the site] for a month or two, and through those 35 people it turns out my network is 136,000 people.”

Friends or Lovers

Right now the service is free, but Abrams says the site will eventually charge for added features. And since its beta – test – launch in March, nearly half a million people have signed up on Friendster.

While a lot of those members are looking for love, plenty are just looking for friends, business connections, and activity partners.

“I met my rock-climbing partner on the site, so it’s great,” says Heather Dorso, who went to a recent Friendster Exposed party in San Francisco. The event was the first face-to-face gathering of Friendster members. Another one is scheduled for later this month in Sunnyvale, Calif.

Even the site’s founder is getting in on the game.

“Eventually I’m hoping to be invited to lots of parties and weddings and have people tell me that they met someone cool on Friendster,” Abrams says. “If I met somebody, hey, that wouldn’t be a bad thing.”