The PC version of GREE, a social networking service launched in February 2004, closed its 17-year history on June 24, 2021.
Contents of the termination of the PC version
With the termination of the PC version of the service, all functions including the following were terminated.
- Use of in-game items
- Purchase of GREE coins
- SNS functions such as chat and community
- Avatar function
- Member registration/withdrawal
- Diary Reproduction to External BlogsURLs already registered to reprint diaries will be deleted.
The URLs that have already been registered as the reprint destination of the diary will be deleted.
The smartphone version of GREE will continue its service, and account information, coins, etc. used on the PC version of GREE can continue to be used on the smartphone version of GREE.
GREE's Achievements in Spreading SNS in Japan
GREE was first developed and launched in February 2004 by Yoshikazu Tanaka, founder of GREE, Inc.
He launched GREE at a time when the term "SNS" had not yet penetrated the general public.
Incidentally, 2004 was also the year that Facebook, the world's largest SNS, was born.
At the time, cell phones were so common that everyone had one, and many multifunctional phones such as mobile wallet phones and one-seg phones were available, but it was still the transition period from 2G to 3G, and it was difficult to share images on SNS using feature phones.
Therefore, it was not unusual at the time for many web services, including SNS, as well as GREE, to be available only on PCs, and this was the norm.
Because the service was only for PC users, it was used by a highly IT-literate segment of the population.
Since the service was only for PC users, users with only cell phones could not use the service, and since PCs themselves were still in the era of few inexpensive models, many people logged into GREE at school or at work.
The community was also active, and there were many 2ch (now 5ch) related communities. However, as the service became mobile compatible, the number of underage users increased, the rules became stricter, and some communities were closed one after another.
GREE shifted to mobile users and focused on games.
With the spread of 3G on cell phones, the functions for feature phones, not limited to GREE, have become more and more extensive in content.
GREE, which can only be used on PCs, has become impossible to register without a cell phone.
Although these developments caused old users from the PC-only era to leave, GREE continued to grow rapidly.
GREE also launched popular games such as "Dancing Girl Crinoppe," "Fishing Star," and "Explore Doriland," and evolved from a social networking service to a gaming platform.
Today, game companies such as Nintendo and SIE are enjoying significant growth in their business performance.
The market for streaming game distribution and e-sports has become quite active, and GREE's foresight in launching an SNS in 2004 and shifting from an SNS-only platform to a game platform is a feat of foresight.
We look forward to the future of GREE, which is now only available on smartphones.