1) Social media like Twitter has grown rapidly in Japan, with Japanese now being the second most used language on Twitter.
2) Twitter and live streaming services like Ustream are being used widely at academic conferences in Japan, allowing remote participation.
3) While domestic social networks in Japan like Mixi are popular, they focus on existing relationships rather than finding new contacts, and don't allow open registration, making international collaboration difficult. However, Mixi and a potential expansion of Facebook in Japan may change this.
4) The presenter recommends two new Japanese services - Lang-8 for language learning across borders, and Researchmap for academic social networking - to facilitate international connections.