Black Singles Dot Com: How Much Is Love Worth?

Online Dating: Paid or Free Membership?

This has been bothering me for a while, but I didn’t want to appear harsh, judgmental or persnickety. But it’s been two months now since I first noticed the trend and I have got to speak on it. I’m not expecting corroboration or validation - I just need to get it off my considerable chest and understand what it is about it that bothers me exactly.




Okay, enough stalling. I’m talking about membership fees and the men or women (trying hard to be impartial here) who don’t pay them.

When I signed up at Black Singles Connection[i] (BSC) in 2003, I signed up as a non-subscriber on a free 7-day trial.  I began communicating with folks, so when the free trial ended, I subscribed in order to maintain my ability to communicate via email and chat.




After about four months, life and financial situations merited a choice. It was necessity vs. fluff, and my BSC subscription fell under the gun.  Loathe to give up my communication, I succumbed to the temptation of coding my email address in parts of my lengthy introduction.  Wouldn’t you know it?  Tasha, the site warden, found it.  I mean, do you know how many profiles on there have email addresses?  And they’re not even cleverly disguised! Not one to give up easily, I waited a few months or so, then tried it again.  Busted … again!  So I retired (gracefully, I’d like to think) from the fray.




I mention the above, not because I want to highlight my not-so-stellar attempt to sidestep payment, but to tell you that my own angst on this topic bewilders me. It’s now May 2005 and I don’t even recall how or why I was prompted to resurrect my BSC profile.  Maybe it was during one of my holiday hideaways from the influx of family and friends.  You know - those moments when you, the single person, become aware of the fact that it’s yet another holiday gathering for which you’re grateful and enthused, but you’re still without a significant other. Or maybe it was just a freebie promotion on BSC's part. In any case, I gave it another shot.