Tokyo-based CyberAgent, one of Japan’s oldest web companies (founded in 1998 and currently listed with a $1.7 billion market cap), issued two interesting press releases earlier this week.
On Tuesday, Cyberagent said their flagship product, blogging platform Ameba, has hit 13 million registered users and continues to be the country’s biggest destination for bloggers.
And on Friday, the company announced that their “Ameba Geinoujin-Yuumeijin” (“Ameba Talents-Celebrities”) blogging platform reserved for stars passed 9,000 users in January. (While anyone can register on Ameba for free, this special platform is only available for bloggers “accredited” by CyberAgent as stars, for example through the artists’ agencies.)
This blogging destination for celebrities is the biggest of its kind in Japan, and in their latest statement, CyberAgent included who the top 10 celebrity bloggers in Japan were last month (this chart actually changes on a daily basis).
Here’s that list (click on the banners to visit the blogs/written in Japanese only):
1. Atsuko Maeda (member of super-popular idol group AKB48)
2. Yuko Oshima (also an AKB48 member)
3. Momo (former cast member of reality TV show Ainori)
4. Saeko Darvish (actress)
5. Tomomi Itano (an AKB48 member)
6. Rino Sashihara (an AKB48 member)
7. Akira Hokuto (ex-wrestler and TV star)
8. Aki Higashihara (model and TV star/her blog is considered to be “special” in Japan)
9. Taiyou Sugiura (actor and TV star)
10. AKB48 (the band’s official blog)
Serkan Toto
It’s over nine thousand! I did not know that there are 9000 “celebrities” in Japan.
I thought current and former AKB 48 members already were getting close to 9000…