From "Pen Pal" to "Net Pal"

In my early childhood I studied a story "Pen Pal". It was a story about two friends, friends for whom friendship was the most pious relationship. Here is narration of the story:
Once a man was going through a magazine and came to know about making friends through letters. He got a name and address of a lady who was seeking some friend (Pen Pal). He decided to write a letter to that lady and ask her for his friendship. When the lady got the letter her heart was filled with joy and happiness to have a Pen Pal.
A series of letters were exchanged between them and in one letter the lady asked for photograph of the man. The 26 year old smart and handsome man very happily sent a photograph to his Pal with lots of dreams in his mind and asked that lady for her photograph. Time went and more letters were exchanged but he never got any photograph of that lady, though expressing his desire to see her photograph several times.
One day the guy received a packet with lots of photographs. The letter was from his Pen Pal. "Dear Pen Pal, it was great having a friend like you. In my entire life I never found a friend like you. Now that its my last letter I am fulfilling your desire to see my photograph." The photographs were of a old lady with average beauty. "I didn't send you my photograph because I knew that you are a young man and after seeing my photograph you will stop writing letters to me that are the only source of motivation to live in my lonely life. This is my last letter because I am very sick and I have asked my neighbor to post this packet to you. I will not be alive to read your letter. But as a friend its my responsibility to fulfill all the desires of my friend. Good Bye dear Pen Pal and hope that our friendship will live in your heart even after seeing my photographs."
Tears flew from the eyes of guy. He had lot of things to tell, that his friendship was not bound to beauty, physical appearance , age etc., to his Pen Pal. He had nothing but memories and letters from his Pen Pal. He never stopped writing letter to his Pen Pal and sending those letters to church.

Now in this new era where Internet is shining, I see lot of people making friends through chat, mails and online communities. I see lots of people making/breaking friendship.
Are these Net Pals going to have the same intensity of emotion for the relationship called friendship as the Pen Pal had, for whom friendship never died even after the death of his Pal.