The number of Internet users totaled 56 million, or 44 percent, of Japanese aged six or older at the end of last year, said Keiichi Takenaka, an official of Japan's Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications.
The most common use of the Internet is to exchange e-mails, which accounted to 64.8 percent, followed by searches for free coupons and shopping information, at 45.9 percent. Other popular usage included actual shopping at 19 percent, and chatting, which accounted to 15.6 percent
Of the total, 6.6 million people accessed the Internet solely via cell phones, Takenaka said, citing the ministry's latest survey, which was released Wednesday.
Lower access fees and the recent growth of the DSL market in the country are expected to boost Internet use, he said.
Japan's 2001 user ratio, up from 37 percent from a year earlier, ranks the country 16th in the world. Sweden, at a 64.7 percent user ratio, leads the globe in Internet usage.
The United States is ranked fourth at 59.8 percent, with 166 million users.
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