Impress Releases 2005 Internet White Paper

Home users of broadband reach 32,244,000
Total number grows by approximately 10 million in one year

- 36.2% of homes have broadband access (as of February 2005) -

Tokyo, June 7, 2005 -- Impress Corporation (headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Keiichiro Tsukamoto) today announced the release, planned for Wednesday, June 15, of the 2005 Internet White Paper - compiled under the supervision of Internet Association Japan (headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Akinobu Kanasugi) - detailing the latest trends in Internet usage.

This year marks the 10th consecutive year of publication of the Internet White Paper - the first survey report on trends in Internet usage compiled in the private sector - which was first published in 1996 under the supervision of Internet Association Japan. Internet White Paper explores and publishes information on the development of the Internet in Japan, from its beginnings to the current broadband era.

Summary of Impressfs 2005 Internet White Paper on the results of its survey into the latest trends in home Internet usage

¡ Number of home broadband users: 32,244,000
The number of broadband users accessing from home(*1), which was 32,244,000 in the February 2005 survey, exceeded 30 million for the first time. This total reflects an increase of approximately 10 million from the figure of 22,467,000*2 from the February 2004 survey.

Among households using the Internet (not including those whose members access the Internet using only mobile phones or PHS phones or use the Internet only at work or at school), the percentage using broadband has increased significantly, rising to 65.2% from last yearfs level of 48.1%. Broadband penetration among all households in Japan has reached 36.2%, with one in three households now having broadband access.

¡ Internet user population in Japan: 70,072,000
The Internet user population in Japan was 70,072,000 in the February 2005 survey. In comparison with the figure of 65,594,000 from the February 2004 survey(*2), growth had slowed to 4,478,000 (6.8%). The estimated Internet user population for the end of December 2005 is 73,720,000.

The household Internet penetration rate (the percentage of households with regular Internet users, regardless of location or connection device) has reached 82.8%, reflecting an increase of 4.7 percentage points from last yearfs level of 78.1%.

In addition, the household Internet penetration rate (the percentage of households with regular Internet users, not including those who use the Internet only at work or at school or only via mobile phones or PHS phones) was 55.4%.

Penetration rate survey method:
Surveying organization: Access Media International, Inc.
Subject households: Ordinary households (responses collected from male and female respondents aged 16 or above)
Subject regions: 26 major cities across Japan, and their suburban areas
Survey method: Telephone survey (using random digit dialing, or RDD)
Survey period: February 2005
Sampling: 100,770 households (area sampling using RDD)
Total number of responses: 44,931 sampled
Number of valid responses: 40,850 sampled
Note: The number of Internet users in each household refers to male and female users aged three or above

(*1) gBroadband connectionh as used in this survey refers to connections made using ADSL/xDSL, CATV, or FTTH (fiber-optic) technologies, public wireless-LAN access points, leased lines, or third-generation mobile phones. In general, gnarrow-band communicationh refers to dial-up connections made via telephone lines, including ISDN lines. However, connections made using mobile phones or PHS phones other than third-generation mobile phones for data communication, and those made using mobile-phone or PHS data cards, are also included in the category of dial-up connections.

(*2) Figures used in the 2004 Internet White Paper were calculated for users aged 16 and above. However, children aged three through fifteen have been included in the figures of the 2005 Internet White Paper. For this reason, the figures from the February 2004 survey referred to in this yearfs White Paper have been adjusted retroactively to include users aged three to fifteen. As such, they differ from the figures noted in the 2004 White Paper.

Other results of the 2005 Internet White Paper Web survey concerning individual and corporate Internet use

Trends in individual use

¡ 2.6% of users with fiber-optic connections subscribed to broadband video services

¡ 31.9% of respondents said they accessed some sites from both mobile phones and personal computers

¡ 72.5% of Internet users were aware of blogs

¡ The third most popular category of Internet software tool, following e-mail clients and Web browsers, was that of RSS readers, which were used by 9.5% of respondents

¡ 46.5% of respondents said they felt that their shopping at stores had decreased due to Internet shopping

Methods used for surveying trends among individual users:
Surveying organization: Interscope Inc.
Subjects: Individual male and female users aged 18 to 59 using the Internet at home
Subject regions: Nationwide
Survey method: Interactive Web survey
Survey period: April 14 and 15, 2005
Sampling: Members of Interscopefs ScopeNet service (survey subjects) were selected and invited by e-mail to access the survey Web site
Final number of valid responses: The sample of fiber-optic users had a size of 500, while those of ADSL/xDSL500, CATV500, and dial-up users were each 100, for a total sample size of 1,600

Trends in corporate use

¡ The percentage of companies using LAN networks that had adopted wireless LAN networking companywide had grown considerably from the previous yearfs survey, from 10.7% to 29.6%

¡ 2.8% of respondent companies utilized blogs on their corporate Web sites for outside access, while more than half of respondents had no plans to utilize blogs

¡ 5.5% of respondent companies had opened mobile Web sites for mobile-phone use, while 77.2% had no plans to open such sites

¡ With regard to security measures implemented, 65.0% of respondent companies used antivirus measures and training, while 24.5% had implemented structures and training for the protection of personal information

Methods used for surveying trends among corporate users:
Surveying organization: Access Media International, Inc.
Subjects: Personnel in charge of adoption, management, and operation of corporate in-house networks, infrastructure, and Web sites
Subject regions: Nationwide
Survey method: Interactive Web survey
Survey period: April 8 to 18, 2005
Sampling: Company directors and managers were selected from the ranks of e-mail media registrants and then invited by e-mail to access the survey Web site.
Impress and Access Media registrants were invited to access the survey Web site.
Final number of valid responses: Sample size: 1,470

The 2005 Internet White Paper includes, in addition to the survey results described above, numerous detailed, diversified reports on survey data and analysis pertaining to Internet usage, such as trends among telecommunications carriers and Internet-related businesses, as well as trends in society as a whole.

Outline of the "2005 INTERNET WHITE PAPER"

Supervisor: Internet Association Japan
Release date: June 15, 2005
Pages: 376 pages
Price: 7,140 yen (tax included)
Publisher: Impress Corporation

* Bundles a CD-ROM containing 312 graphic images (GIF format) based on our independent survey data, and part of our survey results (PDF format) contained in the eight White Papers from the first issue through 2004. The contained data can be re-used in a personal report, office document, or external presentation, provided that the source is cited.

* This book is published in Japanese only