Who needs face to face communication these days? Created in 2004, Mixi (pronounced Mikushi) is one of the most popular social networking service sites in Japan with over 14,000,000 members by the end of 2007. It’s very much like how most social networking sites work. But it has a few little twists that make it unique from the rest. Mixi is made up of 99% Japanese and of course does not offer an English version.

First off, not just anyone can join Mixi. You have to be a member of the ‘über elite’ and have to have at least ONE friend that already has an account (if you don’t have one, I’ll sponsor you, leave your email in the comments), a bit like GMail was working when it was launched. They send you a friend invite, which gives you permission to access the site. The best part is, as soon as you register the person who sent you the invitation is already in your friends list! Like Tom Anderson, but you actually know them!!!

One feature that I think is great is the Ashiato (footprint) that allows you to see who has been stalking you has clicked on your profile. What a great way to track down your stalker and start a relationship. “Hi, I see you viewed my profile 13 times yesterday. You are genuinely scaring me. Let’s be friends!” Breadcrumbs will be displayed on the members profile that show the exact relationship between you and the other person.

Your profile is pretty basic. It shows your name, location, birthdate, interests and blood type. Blood type is a big deal in Japan. I think it’s about as pointless as a zodiac sign. Instead of someone saying “Oh my god, I can totally tell that you’re a Cancer” you would hear “I can so tell your’re AB” and of course the BS of bloodtype compaitiblity exists.

It also has a wall-like feature to it too, where your friends can write really ‘deep’ messages. After reading other friends comments I found it to be a bit different than what you see on Myspace/facebook. None of that “Hey girlfriend! Last weekend was so fun! OMG LOVE YOU!” but more of a positive message like “I like Mika because she’s really nice and makes cheesecake”. So profound and meaningful.

Communities play a big part in Mixi. Much like groups, or “clubs” the user can join a community of his or her interest and discuss same topics while meeting new people. There is a huge range in communities from music groups, fresh beer lovers, and even one for people who love Macintosh keyboard shortcuts. Some groups are private and you need an invite to join.

My thoughts on Mixi: The design itself is good, for the first few days of viewing. Since I joined a year and a half ago the same stale orange color remains, and I hate the color orange (sorry FullSix). However I feel it lacks the organization that facebook does. Most users fail to post their actual photo, or name, scared by the lack of privacy protection, a hot hot topic in the web industry. And it’s not because my japanese girl friends would sell you their dirty underwear online that they want to share EVERYTHING with you! As a result, this makes searching for friends very difficult, but stalking so much fun.