Social networking service users top 65 mil. at 3 major Japanese sites+

OSAKA, Dec. 29 Kyodo - The number of social networking service registrants at three major Japanese operators topped 65 million as of the end of September, a jump of around 40 percent from a year earlier, as they provide diversifying services.

The three major providers -- GREE Inc., DeNA Co. and Mixi Inc. -- have also
renewed their records in revenues, amid the growing popularity of the service
designed to enable Internet users to share their profiles, build social
networks or relations and exchange messages.
Of the three, GREE and DeNA have been particularly successful in operating
mobile game sites, which provide mobile phone users with charge-free games and
allows them to communicate with each other through the games.
GREE had the most number of registrants at 22.46 million as of the end of
September and DeNA, operator of popular Mobage-town mobile game site, the
second-most at 21.67 million.
Mixi, the pioneer in the market which is better known for offering SNS as a
communication tool, had 21.61 million registrants.
The SNS market in Japan is expected to grow further with the establishment of a
Japanese subsidiary of Facebook Inc., which has 500 million active users around
the world.
Meanwhile, troubles related to SNS have also increased. Some users of the
mobile phone games said they have been charged high prices for using tools in
the games, without knowing that the tools cost money.
According to the National Consumer Affairs Center in Japan, it has received 439
complaints between April and December this year in connection with free online
games, up 40 percent from the same period the year before.
About a quarter of the complaints were in relation to the use of such games by
those below age 20, including elementary school students.
==Kyodo