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Yahoo Japan to bolster search results with NHN Japan’s Naver Matome

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Today Yahoo Japan (TYO:4689) and NHN Japan held a joint press conference to announce that the two internet giants would be working together to integrate NHN’s Naver Matome curated content into Yahoo Japan’s search results. The intention is to bring a human element into Yahoo Japan’s search, thus creating a sort of hybrid search experience. For those of you not familiar with Naver Matome, which began back in 2009, my colleague Yukari gave a wonderful overview of the curated service earlier in the month as part of our ‘Japanese internet in depth’ series. Yahoo Japan will also set up a specifically designed search engine for curated Naver Matome results. That engine will also be deployed to Naver Matome in order to provide a better search experience. Work on this project will begin in April. As you can see in the chart below, Matome’s growth has staggering, currently with 41 million visitors a month and over 1.2 billion page views per month. It’s growth over the course of 2012, in terms of monthly visitors, has out-paced even Facebook and Twitter. Needless to say, today’s deal ensures that the platform still has some growing left to do.

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Yahoo Japan president Manabu Miyasaka, NHN Japan president Akira Morikawa

Today Yahoo Japan (TYO:4689) and NHN Japan held a joint press conference to announce that the two internet giants would be working together to integrate NHN’s Naver Matome curated content into Yahoo Japan’s search results. The intention is to bring a human element into Yahoo Japan’s search, thus creating a sort of hybrid search experience.

For those of you not familiar with Naver Matome, which began back in 2009, my colleague Yukari gave a wonderful overview of the curated service earlier in the month as part of our ‘Japanese internet in depth’ series.

Yahoo Japan will also set up a specifically designed search engine for curated Naver Matome results. That engine will also be deployed to Naver Matome in order to provide a better search experience. Work on this project will begin in April.

As you can see in the chart below, Matome’s growth has staggering, currently with 41 million visitors a month and over 1.2 billion page views per month. It’s growth over the course of 2012, in terms of monthly visitors, has out-paced even Facebook and Twitter. Needless to say, today’s deal ensures that the platform still has some growing left to do.

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Monthly visitors of Naver Matome, Facebook and Twitter.
(comparison of November of 2011 and November of 2012, in unit of 1,000 visitors)

naver-matome-growth
Monthly pageviews of Naver Matome (in unit of 100 million pageviews)

Line apps rules Google Play rankings, owns the top 5 in Japan

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While NHN Japan’s popular Line chat app has amazingly surpassed 100 million users, it might be a more impressive feat that the company has managed to turn the app into a platform from which to distribute its other applications. The success of this model is especially evident today, as the current top five free Google Play apps in Japan are all Line apps, as you can see below. Out of the top ten, Line amazingly accounts for seven. While the Line chat app rules the roost, it’s immediately followed by three of NHN Japan’s new games, including Wind Runner which we recently profiled over on our YouTube channel (see below). Line is doing well on the top grossing charts too, with four of the top ten highest grossing apps. If you need any more convincing of the effectiveness of this app distribution model, just look to neighboring South Korea where NHN Japan’s chat app cousin Kakao is even more dominant, occupying almost every position in both the top free and top grossing Google Play charts for that country. (Via Gamebiz.jp, front page photo from MDN)

While NHN Japan’s popular Line chat app has amazingly surpassed 100 million users, it might be a more impressive feat that the company has managed to turn the app into a platform from which to distribute its other applications. The success of this model is especially evident today, as the current top five free Google Play apps in Japan are all Line apps, as you can see below. Out of the top ten, Line amazingly accounts for seven.

line-google-play-march-13-2013
via AppAnnie.com

While the Line chat app rules the roost, it’s immediately followed by three of NHN Japan’s new games, including Wind Runner which we recently profiled over on our YouTube channel (see below).

Line is doing well on the top grossing charts too, with four of the top ten highest grossing apps.

If you need any more convincing of the effectiveness of this app distribution model, just look to neighboring South Korea where NHN Japan’s chat app cousin Kakao is even more dominant, occupying almost every position in both the top free and top grossing Google Play charts for that country. (Via Gamebiz.jp, front page photo from MDN)

Japanese curation site Naver Matome boasts 41 million users, cures information overload

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This is part of our ‘Japanese internet in-depth’ series (RSS). Stay tuned for more features that aim to explain what makes the internet unique in Japan. Naver Matome is a very simple curation platform that launched back in July of 2009. To date it has accumulated over 41 million users and over 1.2 billion page views per month. The platform is now operated by NHN Japan (perhaps best known as the company behind the Line chat app) after a merger with Naver in November of 2011. On the site, users are able to create pages that bundle images, links, and videos under a topic of their choice, ranging from dieting, to politics, to web services. There are many reasons behind the platform’s sucess including its friendly user interface, the wide genre of topics curated, compatibility with different social networks (especially Twitter), and strong SEO for both Yahoo and Google with 70% of its traffic coming from the two search engines. But above all, Naver Matome helps users overcome information overflow. This is especially true for the younger generation, which is Naver Matome’s biggest user segment 1. Many young people have never subscribed to newspapers, and for this reason Japan’s Nikkei,…

naver-matome

This is part of our ‘Japanese internet in-depth’ series (RSS). Stay tuned for more features that aim to explain what makes the internet unique in Japan.


Naver Matome is a very simple curation platform that launched back in July of 2009. To date it has accumulated over 41 million users and over 1.2 billion page views per month. The platform is now operated by NHN Japan (perhaps best known as the company behind the Line chat app) after a merger with Naver in November of 2011.

On the site, users are able to create pages that bundle images, links, and videos under a topic of their choice, ranging from dieting, to politics, to web services. There are many reasons behind the platform’s sucess including its friendly user interface, the wide genre of topics curated, compatibility with different social networks (especially Twitter), and strong SEO for both Yahoo and Google with 70% of its traffic coming from the two search engines.

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Curated cosplay on Matome

But above all, Naver Matome helps users overcome information overflow. This is especially true for the younger generation, which is Naver Matome’s biggest user segment 1. Many young people have never subscribed to newspapers, and for this reason Japan’s Nikkei, one of the country’s largest newspapers, has partnered with NHN to allow the use of texts (up to 200 characters) and images from the digital version of the newspaper in the hopes of attracting younger readers.

The total number of Matome pages now exceeds half a million. But what is the motivation for users to create these pages? Many users do it to earn pocket money. In November of 2010, Naver Matome began an incentive program, where some very popular Matome users with around half a million page views per month could receive payments as high as a few hundered thousand dollars.

Narumi is an example of popular curator with over 2.3 million monthly page views. Some topics he has created include:

Some curators specialize in tech, others in sports. Many of the curated topics are in fact very interesting and inspirational, although there are also many meant to be simply light or humorous.

Sometimes old articles from my personal blog get retweeted, and it’s likely that Naver Matome is contributing to that. The curators on the platform are great hunters of information, assisting others who may have difficulty finding relevant content. I hope that in the future traditional media can find a way to cooperate with Naver Matome and take advantage of the curation platform rather than seeing it as a threat or potential copyright violation, as some currently do.

Naver Matome is a unique corner of the Japanese net, and if you can read Japanese, you’re sure to find something you like over there. Enjoy!


  1. The 20 to 29 demographic accounts for 34% of users, and 15 to 19 makes up 16%

Messaging app Line partners with Nokia to accelerate global expansion

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NHN Japan, the producer of the wildly popular Line chat app, announced yesterday that it has partnered with Nokia (NYSE:NOK) aiming to accelerate the app’s global user acquisition. The company is making the app available on Nokia’s Asha handset, a low priced smartphone (ranging from $100 to $200) that has topped more than 200 million units sold globally. Line will be available on the Nokia Store by the end of March, but some features such as free voice calls will be added later on after the initial release. With this partnership, NHN Japan is targeting new users in South East Asia, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa where Nokia’s budget Asha handset is popular. The two companies will work together to promote the handset and the app at merchant storefronts in these regions. The Line app is now available on several different mobile platforms including iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, and even Japanese feature phones. Currently at the Nokia Booth at Mobile World Congress 2013 in Barcelona, a test version of the app is installed on exhibited Asha handsets so that visitors can try it out. Japanese tech news site RBB Today has several still images of this, which they…

nokia-asha

NHN Japan, the producer of the wildly popular Line chat app, announced yesterday that it has partnered with Nokia (NYSE:NOK) aiming to accelerate the app’s global user acquisition. The company is making the app available on Nokia’s Asha handset, a low priced smartphone (ranging from $100 to $200) that has topped more than 200 million units sold globally.

Line will be available on the Nokia Store by the end of March, but some features such as free voice calls will be added later on after the initial release. With this partnership, NHN Japan is targeting new users in South East Asia, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa where Nokia’s budget Asha handset is popular. The two companies will work together to promote the handset and the app at merchant storefronts in these regions.

The Line app is now available on several different mobile platforms including iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, and even Japanese feature phones. Currently at the Nokia Booth at Mobile World Congress 2013 in Barcelona, a test version of the app is installed on exhibited Asha handsets so that visitors can try it out. Japanese tech news site RBB Today has several still images of this, which they shot at the exhibition booth.

Line recently surpassed the 100 million user milestone, having originally launched back in June of 2011. If you’d like to learn more about it, check out our video overview of the app below.

For more information on the growth of Line, please check out our interactive Line Timeline which chronicles its growth from its launch back in 2011 up until the present day.

What’s so special about Line? [Video]

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Having surpassed the 100 million user milestone, NHN Japan’s popular chat application Line has been a great example of the social potential that lies in mobile. Currently in Asia, it seems that each major region has its own local favorite. For example Korea has KakaoTalk, and China has WeChat/Weixin. Japan’s choice is — overwhelmingly — Line. With about 41.5 million out of its 100 million users in Japan, that means that nearly everyone who has a smartphone in Japan is on Line, since smartphone penetration is said to be about that same total. In comparison, KakaoTalk has about 9 million users in Japan right now, making it a distant second. For those of you who have yet to try Line, check out our video demonstration above of its major features below, showing a few of the many reasons why Japan thinks it’s so great. As you can see, one of the major innovations of this app – in my view – is how it has leveraged chat as a platform to distribute its others mobile apps and services. NHN Japan is expected to make a strong international push with Line in 2013, aiming for as many as 300 million to…

Having surpassed the 100 million user milestone, NHN Japan’s popular chat application Line has been a great example of the social potential that lies in mobile. Currently in Asia, it seems that each major region has its own local favorite. For example Korea has KakaoTalk, and China has WeChat/Weixin.

Japan’s choice is — overwhelmingly — Line.

With about 41.5 million out of its 100 million users in Japan, that means that nearly everyone who has a smartphone in Japan is on Line, since smartphone penetration is said to be about that same total. In comparison, KakaoTalk has about 9 million users in Japan right now, making it a distant second.

For those of you who have yet to try Line, check out our video demonstration above of its major features below, showing a few of the many reasons why Japan thinks it’s so great. As you can see, one of the major innovations of this app – in my view – is how it has leveraged chat as a platform to distribute its others mobile apps and services.

NHN Japan is expected to make a strong international push with Line in 2013, aiming for as many as 300 million to 400 million users.

For more information on the growth of Line, please check out our interactive Line Timeline which chronicles its growth from its launch back in 2011 up until the present day.

NHN Japan to subsidize Line app business, hopes to intensify international push

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Japanese several news resources report today that NHN Japan, most known for its wildly popular Line messaging app, is considering splitting the company into two entities corresponding to its business fields. Its online game portal Hangame is expected to be handled under the existing company but may change its name to Hangame Corporation (tentative), and the Line app, search portal Naver, and news portal and blogging platform Livedoor (acquired from Livedoor Corp in April of 2010) will be handed over to a new company called Line Corporation (tentative title). The split is expected to take place on April 1st, 2013. In the interests of intensifying international marketing efforts for the Line app, the company is also planning to set up a special company called Line Plus Corporation, which will be jointly funded by Line Corporation and NHN Corporation (the parent company in Korea). As many of our readers know, NHN Japan recently announced that Line has acquired more than 100 million users worldwide in January, and the company reportedly has intentions to grow the app to as many as 300 or 400 million by the end of 2013. In the social media space, that would put it in pretty exclusive company, likely…

nhn-subsidiary-logos

Japanese several news resources report today that NHN Japan, most known for its wildly popular Line messaging app, is considering splitting the company into two entities corresponding to its business fields. Its online game portal Hangame is expected to be handled under the existing company but may change its name to Hangame Corporation (tentative), and the Line app, search portal Naver, and news portal and blogging platform Livedoor (acquired from Livedoor Corp in April of 2010) will be handed over to a new company called Line Corporation (tentative title). The split is expected to take place on April 1st, 2013.

In the interests of intensifying international marketing efforts for the Line app, the company is also planning to set up a special company called Line Plus Corporation, which will be jointly funded by Line Corporation and NHN Corporation (the parent company in Korea).

As many of our readers know, NHN Japan recently announced that Line has acquired more than 100 million users worldwide in January, and the company reportedly has intentions to grow the app to as many as 300 or 400 million by the end of 2013. In the social media space, that would put it in pretty exclusive company, likely making it a top five global social network.

For more information on the growth of Line, please check out our interactive Line Timeline which chronicles its growth from its launch back in 2011 up until the present day.

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With 100 million users, LINE is the Japanese Facebook

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Line, one of the most popular smartphone apps in Japan, recently reached the 100 million user milestone. The free chat application was made by NHN Japan Corporation, and launched back in June of 2011. The app makes use of the user’s phone directory, allowing them to get connected with people they actually know in real life. Sound familiar? Yes, Line is in many ways aspiring to be Japan’s Facebook — the primary difference being that Line is a social service born entirely on mobile. Line is gaining popularity around the Asia region with about half of it’s users coming from outside Japan. Many celebrities in Japan are using the app including current prime minister Abe Shinzo who joined the service in January. The biggest reason behind the app’s success lies in the timing of its release. It came during a time when not-so-tech-savvy mainstream users began switching from feature phones to smartphones. With a completely different and unfamiliar tool, people turned to Line for help. With Line, all you needed to get connected with friends was their phone number. And everyone with a phone has that already. Ubiquity, and beyond! Line was first adopted by younger users but gradually gained…

sd-line-image-press

Line, one of the most popular smartphone apps in Japan, recently reached the 100 million user milestone. The free chat application was made by NHN Japan Corporation, and launched back in June of 2011. The app makes use of the user’s phone directory, allowing them to get connected with people they actually know in real life. Sound familiar? Yes, Line is in many ways aspiring to be Japan’s Facebook — the primary difference being that Line is a social service born entirely on mobile.

Line is gaining popularity around the Asia region with about half of it’s users coming from outside Japan. Many celebrities in Japan are using the app including current prime minister Abe Shinzo who joined the service in January. The biggest reason behind the app’s success lies in the timing of its release. It came during a time when not-so-tech-savvy mainstream users began switching from feature phones to smartphones. With a completely different and unfamiliar tool, people turned to Line for help. With Line, all you needed to get connected with friends was their phone number. And everyone with a phone has that already.

Ubiquity, and beyond!

Line was first adopted by younger users but gradually gained popularity over mainstream users including seniors. With over 100 million users, it is the new digital marketing platform. To better take advantage of Line, many companies are conducting user surveys. A survey of married couples and their usage of Line was a particularly interesting one. It targeted 800 married men and women of age 20 to 40. 39.5% responded that the app increased communication with their spouse. 29.4% of respondents answered that their spousal relationship has improved since using the app.

line tenki
Line also launched Line Tenki, or Line Weather this past week

But since last summer, the chat app has become more of a platform than just smartphone chat application. NHN began providing a service named Line Channel in July of 2012, a year after the app’s initial release. On Line Channel, users are able to enjoy games, fortune-telling, and even discount coupons. One game, Line Pop, has been downloaded over 20 million times worldwide as of January 2013, just two months after it’s release.

But there is a cutthroat war brewing in the chat application market. Line is no doubt the pioneer in Japan, but DeNA’s Comm and Korea’s KakaoTalk have jumped in the ring recently too. At the end of 2012, Comm had been downloaded more than five million times since it’s October launch. Kakao Talk had about 70 million users as of December 2012, with 18 million of those overseas, and about 4 million of those in Japan.

We were in touch with the CEO of Viber this week as well, who pointed out that they are hoping to make a renewed push in Asia where the app has 50 million users in total. Interestingly, six million of those are in Japan.

But still, Line’s dominance is pretty secure at home, with about 41.5 million users in Japan. Stay tuned to see how it fares abroad this year.


This is part of our ‘Japanese internet in-depth’ series (RSS). Stay tuned for more features that aim to explain what makes the internet unique in Japan.

For more information on the growth of Line, please check out our interactive Line Timeline which chronicles its growth from its launch back in 2011 up until the present day.