A shamelessly shallow social network, which boasts only beautiful people within its ranks, has been inundated with membership applications following extensive media coverage over its decision to ban members for putting on weight over the festive period.
BeautifulPeople.com, which has more than 500,000 members worldwide, claims that it took the decision after it received a flood of complaints about users that had piled on the pounds over Christmas.
The site imposes a strict ban on ugly people and only admits new members through an application process in which existing members rate the applicant by reviewing their photograph and a brief profile.
So when some of its members posted recent pictures revealing how they had ballooned over Christmas and New Year, the site acted by bringing down the axe on more than 5,000 members.
The company said that the move was necessary to uphold its reputation as a place exclusively for beautiful people and that letting fatties roam the site was a direct threat to its business.
Although BeautifulPeople.com could hardly be praised for its sensitivity, it has nevertheless made a clear and valid PR statement.
If the site wanted to maintain its objective of guaranteeing dates with beautiful people then it has acted appropriately to preserve its reputation.
What's more, by publicising the move it has generated massive media interest and a corresponding explosion in visitors to its site.