New Rent-a-Friend Service
By Haroon Siddique LONDON : Despite all the chatrooms and social networking sites, the lack of faceto-face interaction can make the world wide web a lonely place sometimes. But fear not, for not only can you use the web to order your takeaway and DVD, now you can also use it to order the friend you share them with. Rent a Friend, which already offers its services in the US and Canada , is being launched in the UK this week to give people the chance to overcome their British reserve and hire someone to keep them company. Unlike the myriad dating websites, which cater for everything from a long-term relationship to a nostrings fling, Rent a Friend advertises itself as “strictly platonic”, while also emphasising that it is not an escort agency. “You can rent a local friend to hang out with, go to a movie or restaurant with, someone to go with you to a party or event, someone to teach you a new skill or hobby, or someone to show you around an unfamiliar town,” explains the US websit...