Half Of Phone Break-Ups Via SMS: Survey

In a survey nicely timed to coincide with Valentine's Day, MocoSpace survey 20,000 of its over 10 million registered members, and discovered that SMS is the way that nearly 50 percent of respondents who broke up by phone have chosen to use. Sorry, Neil Sedaka, Breakin' Up Isn't So Hard To Do.

Of course, it's bad enough that those involved can't even bear a face-to-face breakup. 57 percent of those surveyed used their cell phone to break up, and 48 percent of those used SMS to do the deed.

Not only that, the survey by MocoSpace showed that nearly one-third of respondents flirted with someone else via SMS while on a date. Of course, even MocoSpace admits its core demographic is the 17-34 age group, which encompasses most of its users, and which is usually an age range of more casual dating and less commitment.

This isn't the first time it's been noted that SMS is being used more frequently for things that you might think require a face-to-face meeting: firing, break-up, even divorce. Still, that doesn't make it any less cold.

More info from the survey:

• 90% said a user’s “About Me” information is most important after pictures in making the decision to take the first step toward connecting with someone on MocoSpace.
• When asked if they had ever used their mobile to break up with someone, 57% said yes, with 48% of those using a text message to end the relationship
• 79% said the recession had had no effect on their dating habits
• 60% did not have a date yet for Valentine’s Day, and 80% of those do not consider it a priority to find one