While the general look of the social media landscape in Japan in 2016 hasn’t changed much since 2015’s version of this article, one major addition to the game is Instagram. The photo-sharing app is slowly gaining traction among young people in Japan, especially among girls. This article will summarize the key players in social media in Japan today and discuss the rise of Instagram along with the fall of Mixi. Like other social networks, LINE has a timeline feature, and permits users to send private messages, share pictures, movies, music and much more. Users can also use the service to make free voice and video calls. Line was launched in 2011 by NHN Japan, the Japanese arm of South Korean giant Naver. The mobile messaging app began as a means to communicate during the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. Its biggest competitors include WhatsApp, Kakao Talk, WeChat and Kik. “In Japan, young people often swap Line IDs like only a few years ago they’d swap email addresses or phone numbers,” says Brian Ashcraft, an Osaka-based correspondent for gaming site Kotaku. Japan is the only market Twitter is in where they are more popular than Facebook.
” tweets per second.
Culturally, Japanese Twitter users have a deep relationship with the social network, shown in the way they like to tweet en masse during significant events. One example is during the airing of Hayao Miyazaki’s 30-year-old movie “Castle in the Sky Laputa.” During a famous scene in the film, fans across tweeted out “Barasu! ” at the same time. The 2013 airing of the movie generated 143,199 “Barasu! ” tweets per second. Another example is during the Japanese match against Cameroon in the 2010 World Cup. When the Japan team scored a goal, Japanese Twitter users generated 2,940 tweets per second, a record at the time. Anonymity: Privacy is important in Japan, and Twitter allows users to use fake names. Twitter serves as a platform for Japanese users to express emotion anonymously. 140 Characters: In Japanese, you can say almost double what you can say in English with 140 characters. Mobile: Twitter began to catch on in Japan as early as 2007 when it was gaining popularity in the States. Japanese feature phones at the time already had Internet capability and there were various feature phone clients designed for Twitter. The most popular was Movatwitter.
With high ease of use, combined with anonymity and the ability to express detailed thoughts in 140 characters, it’s not a mystery why Twitter is so popular in Japan. Media attention: Facebook attracted growing domestic media attention at the time as the biggest social network in the world. Coupled with the release of the movie “Social Network,” popularity of Facebook soared. Use for business purposes: In Japan, Facebook is eating LinkedIn’s lunch (see image below). Many Japanese have adopted Facebook as a tool for business communications. The social network’s interface and use of real names makes the site a good place to cultivate professional relationships. Moreover, Japanese companies have begun to recognize Facebook’s potential for business and commercial purposes, which is another reason to its success. 2011 Tohoku earthquake: During the 2011 disaster, cell phone lines were affected, but data channels remained open and became the most effective way to stay in touch. Facebook’s policy of using real names allowed people to find accurate information about their loved ones. From that point onwards, a snowball effect propelled usage in Japan. A 2011 survey in Japan showed that 41.4% of Facebook users began using Facebook on the recommendation of a friend.
The bulk of the current user base for Instagram in Japan are female.
Another 22.4% said they started using it because it became a topic of conversation. Instagram’s user base nearly doubled from 2014 to 2015, going from 4 million users to 8.1 million. As a relative newcomer, the photo-sharing social network shows strong growth in Japan. The bulk of the current user base for Instagram in Japan are female. Women aged 18-40 account for over 55% of its total users in Japan. The rise of Instagram comes with the proliferation of smartphones and high-speed mobile connections in Japan. As young people are more likely to use smartphones, Instagram’s demographics skew young to reflect that. Influencers and celebrities are among some of the most popular accounts on Instagram for Japanese users. However, hashtag usage isn’t widespread among female Instagram users in Japan, so brands have to rely on tapping into existing large followings of their own or others to increase engagement. Instagram’s link to Facebook is also important to leverage.
As a social network, the site has fallen to the bottom. Up until 2008, Mixi had a monopoly on the Japanese social media landscape, and 27 million people, or one in five Japanese, had a Mixi account. Little by little, Twitter, LINE and Facebook chipped away at Mixi’s market share by offering better experiences. Ironically, the technology that nearly killed Mixi has become the foundation to its rebirth. First, it hired gaming industry legend Yoshiki Okamoto. The former Konami and Capcom employee (and creator of the Street Fighter II) teamed with producer and director Koki Kimura and Mixi’s head of localization Michael Oakland to create Monster Strike, the game behind Mixi’s revival. Monster Strike rose to number one in mobile app downloads, overtaking Puzzles and Dragons. Mixi returned to the top, but of a totally different playing field. Twitter should be considered closer to LINE as a competitor. However, with the recent issues arising with Twitter’s main office in San Francisco, it remains to be seen how the social network will leverage the thriving Japan market for its business. There’s clearly a lot of potential for growth for Instagram in Japan.
But what about when a conservative’s speech on social media is limited, censored, or entirely banned? Social media companies already possess all the data from the user, as well as the information from the engagement of other users with the banned or censored user’s content. It’s unlikely social media companies would be unable to eliminate the information they gained from such a user after the fact. This means that long after the contractual relationship between said user and social media companies has ended, these giants still profit off a user who has been banned or otherwise censored. First, states could allow standing for ill-gotten gains from a user’s data after being banned. Second, from a privacy standpoint, states could enact legislation that requires social media companies to essentially buy a user out if censored or banned in order to forfeit privacy. There is no evidence to indicate social media companies purge all information on deplatformed users. And, since they don’t, a banned user should be compensated. Social media access is necessary for social relevance. If social media companies choose to ban or censor posts that aren’t unlawful, they ought to be forced to compensate users for gains received after the user no longer enjoys the benefit of such a service. Balancing the economic outcomes of users and social media companies will increase openness and encourage more speech while diminishing privacy abuses.
Teens’ relationship to social media addiction is a big topic today. Teenagers are among the biggest consumers of social media—but is it consuming them? Scientists are discovering an increasing number of troubling links between social networking and mental health challenges. These range from distress to teen depression. Furthermore, research is also zeroing in on the effects of social media addiction on the teenage brain. “Adolescence is second only to infancy when it comes to growth. Therefore, the impact of social media on a developing teen’s mind and body can be huge,” says Kristin Wilson, MA, LPC, Director of Clinical Outreach at Newport Academy. First of all, let’s take a look at the numbers. 71% of teens use Facebook, 52% use Instagram, 41% use Snapchat, 33% use Twitter, and 14% use Tumblr. 77% of parents say their teens get distracted by their devices and don’t pay attention when they’re together. 59% of parents say they feel their teen is addicted to their mobile device.
What Is Social Media For
50% of teens say they feel addicted to their mobile device. Social Media Addiction: A Cause, or a Symptom? Research shows that teenagers’ use of social media goes hand in hand with increased teen depression. But is social media a catalyst for depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues? Or, is social media addiction a symptom of a mental health disorder? These are not always easy questions to answer. “There could be many reasons a teenager would become depressed, anxious, or experience social phobias while using social media. In addition, there are just as many reasons why social media is enticing to a teen with an existing mental health issue,” Wilson says. “Most teens have difficulty regulating and expressing emotions. Kids have a huge susceptibility to peer pressure. Kids who already feel isolated and unhappy are particularly vulnerable. Teens and social media addiction are an unfortunate match. In addition, teens seek online experiences for a sense of escape and connection, according to Nicholas Kardaras, author of Glow Kids: How Screen Addiction Is Hijacking Our Kids—and How to Break the Trance.
Top Most Social Networking Sites
But the relief is short-lived. Hence, the constant overstimulation of social networking shifts the nervous system into fight-or-flight mode. Also, this makes disorders such as ADHD, teen depression, oppositional defiant disorder, and teen anxiety worse. “Furthermore, for teens, being addicted to Facebook or other forms of social media is a never-ending addictive loop. Therefore, they keep coming back for more, whether their emotional response is good or bad. The frequency of a teen’s use of social media has a clear correlation to how they feel. Being13, generated profound insights. The research found that participants who checked Facebook or other networking sites between 50 and 100 times a day were 37 percent more distressed than those who checked just a few times a day. Those who checked more than 100 times a day were 47 percent more distressed on average. Bottom line: Whether or not your teen is dealing with a mental health issue, excessive time spent social networking is never a good thing. That’s particularly true because of how social media use affects the still-developing teenage brain.
Social Media Newsroom
Social networking sites (SNS) have gained much momentum since the dot-com boom at the start of the new millennium. Networking websites embody many characteristics of Web 2.0, including an interactive, user-based platform built around the notion of a personalized profile page that reflects how you want to be perceived. Along with a profile, another important aspect of social networking is being able to link to the circle of friends that your acquaintances have built, creating a world that is truly connected by a few clicks of a mouse. SNSs not only allow for users to stay connected more frequently, but they also provide a more personal user experience in a generation founded upon technology. Like other web-based services, there is a mass conglomeration of social networking websites springing up on the Internet. According to its website, Facebook boasts more than 800 million active users, while Twitter, which is growing even faster, claims more than 500 million active users.
Social media accounts for the majority of time spent online. Social networking sites have gotten much attention recently as privacy has become an increasingly important issue as younger children begin to use these sites. Further, a recent study by USC revealed that the younger generation is less likely to hesitate to give out personal information on sites like Facebook. The generation known as “millennials” has become ever more engaged with social media sites, ranging from “liking” a product on Facebook, or sharing their location, and tweeting private information. The number of 18-34 year olds who were willing to share their personal information was 56 percent compared with 42 percent for those 35 and older. Although it would be easy to categorize SNSs as a tool used to keep individuals connected, that would be an oversimplification. Different sites serve diverse roles that fit into the various niches to improve Internet accessibility.
Number One Social Media Site
Personal networking: For example, Facebook and Twitter have been categorized as “lifestyle” social networking tools, where users actively upload photos, update their interests, and comment on other user’s activities. Similarly, sites such as LinkedIn aim toward working professionals and make searching for jobs and networking with colleagues more convenient. Corporate and Market Research: Because social networks have such a large pool of users, they have also become a new form of market outreach. Although the largest demographic among SNS users is the college population, companies and other individuals are beginning to submerse themselves in this platform to target. Companies are eager to expand their reach turn to SNSs to gather demographic information and improve marketing tactics. One way that corporations reach out to users is through ad sales. 11 billion by 2017, according to reports (Stambor, 2013). Ads seen on sites such as Facebook and Twitter, the two sites that dominate more than 70 percent of SNS ad sales, are customized to user preferences. For examples, if a person has stated liking a particular musical artist on their page, ads that appear in the banners will be related to that artist or other musicians similar to the group.
We are heading away from a mass-marketing approach to a niche strategy that utilizes the advances technologies of the Web. Besides boosting ad sales, SNSs are becoming a platform for business-exchange. Recently, Visa was the first company to launch an application directed towards small businesses on Facebook. The use of social networking has begun playing a prominent role in combating terrorism and seen by the recent Boston Bombings event. In this case, thousands of witnesses flooded the Internet and authorities with evidence in the form of pictures and video, taken mostly from cell phones. While police were initially overwhelmed by the large amount of evidence at their disposal they also had to take into account the investigation that was taking place parallel to their own. This occurred when users of online social networking sites like Facebook and Reddit, began examining evidence that was made available by other users and started making conclusions based on it. This resulted in innocent bystanders being accused of setting off the devices.
Theories that began on these sites were sent spinning out into the Web and some news sources began to pick them up and use them, as the falsely accused rushed to defend themselves online. These amateur investigations began to hurt the official one, forcing authorities to stay one step ahead of the Internet vigilantes. Social networking sites also facilitate the mobilization of grass-root movements, especially among the younger generation. One such example is the Darfur cause. The Genocide Intervention Network (GI-Net), a non-profit aiming to promote awareness, advocacy and fundraising for civilians, started out as an on-campus organization that now includes over 300 colleges and 200 high schools in less than two years. GI-Net utilizes platforms such as MySpace, LiveJournal and Facebook to spread information about the organization. In many cases, students themselves were “self-organizing” within these sites, rallying friends on the site to learn more about the cause. On a more serious level, social networking activity in the Middle East is stirring great controversy within political infrastructure.
For example, SNSs played a significant role in the spread of the Arab Spring and revolts of early 2011. In Algeria, Tunisia and Egypt, civil unrest was spread through social media sites and protestors were given a place to organize. In the 2009 Iranian Presidential Election, the SNS Twitter, played an vital role in the organization and information dissemination efforts of the Mousavi supporters. The reformist camps used Twitter to circumvent strict governmental political oversight and rally support. The effect of social networks in the Middle East since the Arab Spring can still be widely felt even after two years. The governments of some of these countries now use Twitter and Facebook to communicate with citizens. Most famously this could be seen when President Morsi of Egypt issued his policy announcements via Facebook. In other countries such as Iran, political candidate Hooshang Amirahmadi has taken to Reddit, answering questions from all over the world.
Unfortunately, the use of social networks has also proven to be a detriment to the Arab Spring, leading to a high level of political polarization as debates take place online rather than in moderated forums. In contrast to general SNSs like Facebook, niche-specific sites have been growing in popularity because people are searching for a more private, community-based network that larger sites can no longer provide. It is an “inevitable reaction” to “leave for a smaller, more personal experience,” says senior analyst Deborah Williamson of eMarketer (Holahan, 2007). Of these sites, online support groups are highly sought after. For example, Patients Like Me is a recently emerging SNS that acts as an online therapy group in which people can search for others with similar experiences or share their own stories to help others cope. Individuals who suffer from HIV/AIDS, depression, and Parkinson’s disease now have a common space to seek advice and learn about new treatment without distance barriers.
SoberCircle is another example of an online support group, specifically for those overcoming addictions. Looking at the figure below, we see that social networking sites have a global reach. For instance, V Kontakte is most popular in Eastern Europe and Russia, while Facebook is heavily concentrated in North America, Europe and Africa. The growth of Facebook throughout the world has begun to foster the global connections that these sites sought out to develop. Because social network sites span across nations and cultures, many networks are beginning to adapt to these changes. One example is XIHA, a Finland-based start up, which bridges language barriers by offering the first multilingual SNS. According to Jani Penttinen, the Co-Founder and CTO at XIHA, the website was created out of the necessity to provide an online community that wasn’t based around one language. “Users can simultaneously select as many languages as they know or want to learn.
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Topic title: 7 Ways to Guard Against Social Media Outsourcing
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