The research is not my own, however the conclusions drawn are. PowerPoint presentation on Social Mobile in Japan 2009-2010.

1. Image source: http://takeme2japan.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/graph11.jpg Social Mobile in Japan

2. Breakdown of Mobile usage in Japan In 2008, about 62m users accessed the Internet from both PC and mobile phone. 82.6% of mobile phone users browsed mobile Internet from their phones in 2008. In 2009, this number increased to 84.3%. Image: http://www.slideshare.net/yaromir/japan-mobile-sns-study-2010

3. Mobile Social Networking in Japan The big three social networks in Japan: Mobage Townis a game-centric social network with a focus on delivering a fun and entertaining experience. Mixi is focusing on creating the value of communication among real life friends through social apps and games. Gree is a virtual online community where users can socialize with each other through avatars, play games and earn or buy virtual goods. From 4,000 Japanese respondents, 75.4% said they only accessed social networking sites from their mobile phone (and not from their PC). All 3 social networks placed in top 5 search terms on mobile in 2009. 40 % of users use mobile search everyday. Source: http://www.slideshare.net/saren/digital-japan-2010-by-the-numbers Source: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/SMC/163718

4. Main SNS features used on mobile phone When logged in from a mobile phone, almost 60% of users play games... Why Gaming over Conversation? “Much of this has to be due to cultural differences and how it's not socially acceptable to openly vent, or publicly comment on true feelings especially if there is a mixture of different social levels” – Comment by ckawa- LINK Image: http://www.slideshare.net/yaromir/japan-mobile-sns-study-2010

5. Brand positioning of big three in Japan Availability of games and entertainment content is pivotal for success of SNS in Japan. Mobage Town is mainly focused on offering a high entertainment, gaming experience. Mixi looks to focus on communication among real life friends through social apps and games Gree is the in-between network where users can do both. They can socialize with each other through avatars, play games and earn or buy virtual goods. Source: http://www.slideshare.net/yaromir/japan-mobile-sns-study-2010

6. Social networks attract users by multiple features Image: http://www.slideshare.net/yaromir/japan-mobile-sns-study-2010

7. Mobile social network membership overlapping is common in Japan Image: http://www.slideshare.net/yaromir/japan-mobile-sns-study-2010

8. Japanese user characteristics Users prefer using mobile phones over computers Japanese people prefer to be anonymous and rarely publish their real names. Simplicity is best when it comes to social network formats. If users want to know anything, they ask (usually strangers) anything important. This includes “my wife is going to have a love affair this weekend. What should I do?” Source: http://www.slideshare.net/arcarna/socialmedia-in-japan-1835099 90% of 16-24 year olds use the mobile web at least once a day.

9. Conclusion There are some differences between the Japanese and West when it comes to mobile usage. However, there are of course some similarities. For example we all crave phones that have multiple features that can keep us entertained or informed whenever we required it. The fact that over 500 million iPhone applications have been downloaded proves this.

10. Conclusion We have seen how Japanese users usually communicate through games rather than conversations due to social restrictions within their culture. In the West we are much more open and willing to share our personal information. Users in the West also enjoy gaming programmes with Farmville, Mafia Wars and Texas HoldEm Poker attracting millions of users a month. The only difference is the way we (in the west) access those games, usually by PC. The Japanese use their mobile phones so regularly, for so many different things, this seems be a strong indicator for future behaviour in the West. I believe we will gradually move away from laptops and PC’s the more mobile phone capabilities develop. I think we can even see this change starting to happen.

11. Thank You By Willi5T @TommyMWillis