mixi

i am living in japan with a mobile that has an email address but it's only prepaid and i don't have access to the internet on it so i can't create a mixi account even though i have an invite. Does anyone know a way i can get around this? Because i really want an account...

p.s. i am sorry if this question has been asked, my computer isn't working well and i can't use the search function.

Thanks

Alicia,

I believe you can register and use Mixi from a mobile alone via the Mixi mobile site.
http://m.mixi.jp

More details here...
http://mixi.jp/mobile_access.pl

Hope this helps. Let us know if it works (or doesn't work).

Well I'm experiencing the same problem as Alicia where I really want to create a Mixi account and I've got an invite. But because my mobile is a softbank prepaid I can't access the internet except for sending and recieving mail. This means that we won't be able to go to the mixi website. I've also tried to get my friend to resend me the invitation to my laptop email but the same thing happened when i was filling out the registeration form. It asked for my mobile email address and I entered . Then an confirmation email came to my pc email and mobile email and inorder to get your account activated you need to reply the confirmation email that were sent to both the pc email and mobile email. I've tried forwarding the mobile confirmation to my friend's mobile to see if i could use their internet to activate the account but it didn't work unless i use my own mobile to access that link. I'm sorry this kind of dragged a bit too long but if anyone has any clue how to get around this please let us know. Thank you again for your time!

I might be missing something here, but is there any reason you don't go to an internet cafe and activate your mixi account? It's not only for mobile phones.

Royce,

I think you have just two options:

1 Get an email account from a proper ISP rather than a disposable email address such as Yahoo or Gmail. Then you won't need to enter an mobile phone address.

2 Get a (non-prepaid) mobile phone that can access the internet to confirm your initial registration.


Sira,

It's complicated, but Mixi requires additional confirmation from a mobile phone for people registering using a disposable PC email address. This is to prevent multiple registrations. As Royce says, prepaid phones don't seem to allow access to the authentication URL, so she's stuck.

Oh, I see. I have that kind of email address and now I do seem to remember having to confirm my mixi account on my phone as well, but I hadn't realised that they were that strict.

Well firstly thanks everyone for your replies, much apprepricated.

Just got a few questions about the disposable email address. So what is a pc disposable email address I don't really get it. Right now ive been using my hotmail account in japan as well which ive used for a long long time. But i also have a gmail account.

So does that mean if i use an gmail account to register I won't be required to enter a mobile address?

Oops let me rephrase myself, made a mistake.

So if i register with a proper ISP email address I won't need to enter a mobile email address.

So now can anyone introduce me to some proper ISP email accounts cause I don't have th slightest clue what they are. Once again thank you all for your replies, really helped a bunch.

Dave
Also I'm not allowed to create a plan cause of some damn reason. I forgot what was my organisation told me but some weird reason. So I can only use prepaid and just to let you all know only 19 here so still a minor ( in japan).

I used windows live(hotmail). I originally signed up with my yahoo email, but noticed the messages sent to my inbox weren't showing up properly so I then decided to use my windows live email, and now everything seems to be working properly so maybe if you try signing up with a windows live email you won't have to enter cell phone information. I know I didn't have to enter cell phone information. Hope this helps :)

I do mixi with my mail adress at www.yahoo.co.jp

I was invited almost 2 years ago, so don't know, whether then it was already necessary to have a mobile-phone adress.
Just know, that I didn't have to confirm one and still use mixi without any problem ^^

Good luck!

Royce,

What I mean by "disposable" email addresses are free email addresses such as Yahoo, Gmail, and Hotmail. The situation is complicated by the fact that Mixi does not publish an explicit list of which types of email are subject to the restriction, but I think it is fair to say that all popular freemail addresses are covered.
An ISP address is a regular email address that you have to pay for, such as odn or dion etc in Japan.
I can't say for certain, but it should be possible to find a freemail address that Mixi does not recognize as such.


To BbyGrl and Yozakura,

Originally, there was no restriction on freemail accounts, but the new rule was introduced last year. This only applies to new registrants, not to people already registered.

"Originally, there was no restriction on freemail accounts, but the new rule was introduced last year. This only applies to new registrants, not to people already registered.
by Dave in Saitama"

A year ago? If that is so then I shouldn't have been able to sign up. I heard the new policy that requires a phone email started this past April. And, I just signed up maybe a month ago, and didn't need a phone email, and I used a free windows live email to sign up.

so i've been lucky to register before that thing appeared^^

i dont have anything like mobile email address (yeah, but i know how it works in japan - no one's sending an SMS, they're all mailing)

Kat wrote:

A year ago?

Yep, March 2007. (See Japanese news article below)
http://www.rbbtoday.com/news/20070327/40122.html

And, I just signed up maybe a month ago, and didn't need a phone email, and I used a free windows live email to sign up.

I'm not familiar with Windows Live Email (not Hotmail?), but that's good news for Royce then.

Well you guys must have been really lucky then because I've tried countless times trying to apply without entering my mobile email and it doesn't work. I guess I've got to get a fee paying email then if I want a mixi account.

Well anyhow I thank you all for your time. If anyone has any better suggestion please let me know.

Thank you all again!

hello,
i try also to register on mixi (without email phone), look like there is no way... i have my proper domain name, but i always need to give the mobile email adress.. :(
if you find a solution, i will follow this thread.
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I have been on mixi for a while already so I didn't have to enter the mobile e-mail.

However I remember there was a thread of this subject at mixi too. There were people who were able to register without the e-mail address and those who weren't.
Someone had a theory, that you might be able to register without mobile e-mail address if you lived outside of Japan.
This seems very likely as my friend registered only few months ago without any troubles and she most definitely doesn't have a japanese mobile e-mail address as she lives in Finland.

I can't remember what the registration form is like, but if there is a location try changing your location outside of Japan and try again. ^^

Hi all

I've seen some confusion in the comments, so here is what I've researched into it:

1. Cellphone requirement was first added in Japan only. There used to be an exemption for people abroad, but due to abuse (you can pretend to be in a different country using an Internet proxy), it was extended to foreign countries as well.
2. .edu emails are allegedly exempt from the cellphone requirement. There used to be one service available for anyone who makes a donation (australia.edu if I'm not mistaken) but they're apparently on to that one, and it's been banned. Not sure if the whole range of .edu emails was also banned
3. paid Japanese emails of Japanese broadband service providers should work without a cellphone. However I don't know which ones I can apply to from abroad. I've tried excite bb but they don't allow international credit cards. Will keep looking.

I am in the same situation too. I am currently in Japan but only have Softbank prepaid and can't access Internet. I tried using my gmail and my university email in Canada, and both required me to enter my mobile email. However, then I put my Kyoto University email, the registration has gone through without requiring me to activate through mobile phone.

So if you are also studying in Japan, you should try logging in with your university email. If you are working, maybe your work email would work too.

After you register, you can then change you email address to whatever you want. So even if you don't have such email address, you can find a friend who does and register for you and just change the email address afterward.

And I tried then to add my mobile email to mixi. This time, you also need to click a link to verify the address. However, I can forward that email to my PC email and click the link for iPhone. This way, you can add your mobile email address and receive updates on your phone.