d/b/a
A trade name, trading name, or business name, is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is a "fictitious" business name. Registering the fictitious name w ...
ADK, formerly known as Asatsu-DK, is a Japanese
advertising agency
An advertising agency, often referred to as a creative agency or an ad agency, is a business dedicated to creating, planning, and handling advertising and sometimes other forms of promotion and marketing for its clients. An ad agency is generally ...
. Headquartered in the
Toranomon Hills
is a skyscraper complex project built by Mori Building in the Toranomon district of Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Designed by Nihon Sekkei, it is built around the new Loop Road No. 2, a surface artery that will connect the Shinbashi and Toranomon dist ...
building complex in
Minato, Tokyo
is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is also called Minato City in English.
It was formed in 1947 as a merger of Akasaka, Azabu and Shiba wards following Tokyo City's transformation into Tokyo Metropolis. The modern Minato ward exhibits th ...
since June 2014 (previously in
Tsukiji
Tsukiji (築地) is a district of Chūō, Tokyo, Japan. Literally meaning "reclaimed land", it lies near the Sumida River on land reclaimed from Tokyo Bay in the 18th century during the Edo period. The eponymous Tsukiji fish market opened in 193 ...
,
Chūō, Tokyo
is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward that forms part of the heart of Tokyo, Japan. The ward refers to itself in English as Chūō City. It was formed in 1947 as a merger of Kyōbashi, Tokyo, Kyobashi and Nihonbashi wards following Tokyo C ...
), the firm is Japan's third largest advertising agency after
Dentsu
Dentsu Inc. ( ja, 株式会社電通 ''Kabushiki-gaisha Dentsū'' or 電通 ''Dentsū'' for short) is a Japanese international advertising and public relations joint stock company headquartered in Tokyo. Dentsu is currently the largest adverti ...
and
Hakuhodo
is a Japanese advertising and public relations company. It is headquartered at Akasaka Biz Tower in Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo.
History
Hakuhodo is one of the oldest advertising agencies in Japan and was founded by Hironao Seki at Nihonbashi-H ...
.
The agency has 80 offices in over 20 countries. One, Asatsu-DK Europe, was established in 1993 in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
,
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
.
Bain Capital
Bain Capital is an American private investment firm based in Boston. It specializes in private equity, venture capital, credit, public equity, impact investing, life sciences, and real estate. Bain Capital invests across a range of industry se ...
has owned the company since 2018.
History
Asatsu Inc. was established in 1956 by Masao Inagaki. In August 1998, it entered a business tie-up with the
WPP Group
WPP plc is a British multinational communications, advertising, public relations, technology, and commerce holding company headquartered in London, England. It was the world's largest advertising company, as of 2019. WPP plc owns many compan ...
. It soon merged with fellow advertising agency
Dai-ichi Kikaku Co., Ltd. (established in 1951) to form Asatsu-DK (the DK stands for Dai-ichi Kikaku) on January 1, 1999. Masao Inagaki died on April 16, 2015. In October 2017, it was reported that U.S. private equity firm Bain Capital was looking to buy Asatsu-DK for ¥152 billion ($1.35 billion).
On January 1, 2019, it was reported that Asatsu-DK fully acquired
d-rights
d/b/a ADK, formerly known as Asatsu-DK, is a Japanese advertising agency. Headquartered in the Toranomon Hills building complex in Minato, Tokyo since June 2014 (previously in Tsukiji, Chūō, Tokyo), the firm is Japan's third largest adverti ...
. It had previously shared that company with Mitsubishi Corporation.
Controversy
In October 2022 ADK President Shinichi Ueno was arrested as part of a Prosecutors investigation into
bribery
Bribery is the Offer and acceptance, offering, Gift, giving, Offer and acceptance, receiving, or Solicitation, soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official, or other person, in charge of a public or legal duty. With reg ...
. Prosecutors alleged that ADK sent ¥47 million to a former executive of the
Tokyo Olympics organizing committee through two different routes in exchange for preferential treatment of sponsorship contracts for the
2020 Tokyo Olympic and
Paralympic Games
The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...
.
Subsidiaries and interests
It owns a variety of interests, including production companies
NAS
Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones.
Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to:
Aviation
* Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea
* National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia
** Nas Air ( ...
and d-rights; animation studio
Eiken
Eiken may refer to:
Places Norway
* Eiken, Norway, a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county
* Eiken, Agder, a village in Hægebostad municipality in Agder county
** Eiken Church, a church in Hægebostad municipality in Agder county
Swi ...
; animation studio
Gonzo
Gonzo may refer to:
People
* Gonzo (nickname), a list of people with the nickname
* Radislav Jovanov Gonzo (born 1964), Croatian music video director Radislav Jovanov, also known as Gonzo
* Matthias Röhr (born 1962), German musician whose stage ...
; Nihon Bungeisha Publishing; film and print processor Taiyo Seihan; production studio Sun Artist Studio, Supervision Inc.;
television commercial
A television advertisement (also called a television commercial, TV commercial, commercial, spot, television spot, TV spot, advert, television advert, TV advert, television ad, TV ad or simply an ad) is a span of television programming produce ...
production house Prime Pictures; and creative services company Tokyo Ad Party.
Asatsu-DK is also involved in producing and providing its services to numerous
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
series, through itself as well as its subsidiaries, including recent installments of
Sunrise
Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon and its accompanying atmospheric effects.
Terminology
Al ...
's Gundam series, such as the latest series ''
Mobile Suit Gundam 00
is a Japanese anime television series, the eleventh installment in Sunrise studio's long-running ''Gundam'' franchise comprising two seasons. The series is set on a futuristic Earth and is centered on the exploits of the fictional paramilita ...
'', ''
Turn A Gundam
, also stylized as ''∀ Gundam'', is a 1999 Japanese mecha anime series produced by Sunrise, and aired between 1999 and 2000 on Japan's FNN networks. It was created for the ''Gundam Big Bang'' 20th Anniversary celebration, and is the ei ...
'', ''
Mobile Suit Gundam Seed
is an anime series developed by Sunrise and directed by Mitsuo Fukuda. The ninth installment in the ''Gundam'' franchise, ''Gundam SEED'' takes place in a future calendar era, in this case the Cosmic Era. In this era, mankind has devel ...
'' and ''
Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny
is an anime television series, a direct sequel to ''Mobile Suit Gundam SEED'' by Sunrise and the overall tenth installment in the ''Gundam'' franchise. It retains most of the staff from ''Gundam SEED'', including Director Mitsuo Fukuda. Se ...
'', as well as several other anime titles.
References
External links
Official website*
{{Authority control
Advertising agencies of Japan
Mass media companies based in Tokyo
Service companies based in Tokyo
Mass media in Tokyo
Japanese companies established in 1956
Marketing companies established in 1956
Mass media companies established in 1956
Bain Capital companies
Anime companies
2018 mergers and acquisitions