Internet is useful but alienating, Japanese gov't finds

TOKYO -- The Internet is widely seen as a good thing in Japan, although life online comes with its costs, according to a recent report by the Japanese government.

Three-quarters of those surveyed either agreed or somewhat agreed that the Internet has had a favorable impact on Japanese society as a whole, according to a white paper published last week by Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC).

But the Internet hasn't necessarily made people happier, the report suggests. More than half the respondents said they felt the Internet is weakening interpersonal relationships, and eight out of 10 said they sometimes feel flooded by too much information.

About 80 million people in Japan were using the Internet at the end of 2004, up from 47 million at the end of 2002. Of those people, about two thirds had broadband access, or about 10 times as many as in 2000, MIC said. Japan's population is about 127 million.

The MIC did not say how many people it polled in a series of Web-based surveys to compile the report.

The Internet has become a good tool in some important ways over the last few years, people said. For example, nine out of 10 surveyed said it has improved for online shopping. Even more -- 95 percent -- said the Internet is useful in their daily life.

Some burdens associated with the Internet are not as heavy in Japan as they are in the U.S., the MIC suggested.

One in five people said their PCs has been infected by a virus at some point. That compares to a third of users in the U.S., MIC said.

Phishing in Japan also seems less widespread than in the U.S. One in 10 users said they had received phishing e-mails, compared to more than a third of users in the U.S., according to the MIC.