ITWire

The survey, around the use of mobile phones in dating and relationships, was conducted by UK mobile phone retailer, Dial-a-Phone. Other interesting attitudes it uncovered were that: 24 percent of women, but zero percent of men, would rather give up sex than their mobile phone for a month.

Dial-a-Phone even has its own "relationship expert", Flic Everett, who comments, rather superfluously, " Never ever answer your phone during sex...There's a time and a place for mobile phones! Turning them off occasionally or even switching them to silent will make your loved-one feel as though they have your attention."

Seems that mobile phones are also an extremely valuable tool in the preparatory phase. The survey found that "Singletons consider their mobile phone their most valuable dating weapon - arranging dates and getting to know prospective partners through text messaging (sending on average 12 before they meet up) to relaying the success of the date during the event to their mates (four out of five contact a mate during a date)."

Relationships expert Flic Everett comments: "...we can sound out a potential love match over a series of texts to decide whether we want to set up a date. This new way of building relationships means that we are effectively phasing out first dates, by the time we meet up we are psychologically in second date territory, with small talk out of the way."

And when the relationship has run its course. You can end it as you started it, with a text message. The survey found that 11 percent of people under the age of 34 admitted to having been dumped by text message.