TOKYO OLYMPICS CORRUPTION - PART 11

 Daiko, ranked fourth in the industry, executive officer arrested for Olympic corruption is "excellent salesman"

Advertising company Daihiro (Osaka City), whose executive officer was arrested on suspicion of bribery, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hakuhodo DY Holdings, the second largest in the industry after Dentsu. Based in the Kansai region, it is the fourth largest medium-sized company in the industry on its own. In recent years, the company has also been focusing on sales in Tokyo, with sales of approximately 28 billion yen in the fiscal year ended March 2022.

According to people familiar with the matter, the arrested executive officer, Yoshikazu Taniguchi, 57, joined Daiko in 1987 and worked in sales mainly at the Osaka headquarters, becoming an executive officer in 2016. According to the arrest charges, Executive Officer Taniguchi was in charge of the language school management company that Ohiro allegedly wanted to become an agent for the sponsorship contract.

One former Ohiro said, "Executive Officer Taniguchi had a sharp drop in performance depending on the customer, but he was a good fit for a company that fits. Regarding his arrest on bribery charges, he said, "I don't think it was a particularly big contribution to the company, but I wondered why I did it.

In response to the arrest of the executive officer, Ohiro said, "We take the situation seriously and seriously, and sincerely apologize for the concern and inconvenience caused to everyone, and we will fully cooperate with the investigation, make efforts to prevent recurrence, and work to restore trust."

NAKANOSHIMA CENTRAL TOWER - HOME OF DAIHIRO ADVERTISING COMPANY

"Dentsu 1 Strong" Olympics composition - Other advertising companies rely on the prestige of the former director?

In the corruption case surrounding the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, an executive officer of the advertising company "Daiko" was arrested on suspicion of bribery on the 27th, and the stage of the bribery charge against Haruyuki Takahashi (78), a former director of the organizing committee of the Games, shifted from "selection of the sponsor" to "selection of an agency to serve as a contact point for sponsorship contracts". While Dentsu, the head of the advertising industry, is establishing a "one-strong system," other advertising companies are trying to enter the national project relying on the prestige of the former director.

Other advertising companies, mechanisms that are difficult to enter

"Former director Takahashi introduced me to Dentsu and I was able to get involved in marketing." Hiroshi Ochiai, president of Ohiro, confided in an interview in early August that he relied on former director Takahashi, who has "two faces," the organizing committee director and former managing director of Dentsu, to become an agent for the sponsorship contract.

The organizing committee, which was established in January 2014, signed a contract with Dentsu in April of the same year as a "dedicated agent" to attract sponsors, relying on the company's extensive experience in international sporting events. In principle, companies aiming to become sponsors had Dentsu as their contract window, making it difficult for other advertising companies to enter the market. However, if Dentsu or the organizing committee recognized the necessity, other advertising companies were allowed to act as "sales cooperation agents" as contact points for sponsors.

According to President Ochiai, Ohiro had a long relationship with the language school management company involved in the sponsorship agreement, and Ohiro had a better share of the business with the company than Dentsu. 

Former director "turns to Ohiro" approached Dentsu Agency selection difference - Tokyo Olympics corruption

In the corruption case surrounding the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, former director of the Games Organizing Committee suspect Haruyuki Takahashi (78) = re-arrested on suspicion of bribery = Suspect Yoshikazu Taniguchi (57) = arrested on suspicion of bribery = executive of the major advertising company "Dentsu" gathered at his own company and "turned the window of the sponsorship contract of the language school management company to Ohiro" It was found out through interviews with related parties that there was a suspicion that he had made a difference. The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors' Special Investigation Department seems to believe that the former Dentsu managing director had the influence to effectively decide the agency for the contract.

According to the officials, the organizing committee, which was established in January 2014, outsourced the task of collecting sponsors with Dentsu as a "dedicated agent." In principle, companies aiming to become sponsors had to negotiate with Dentsu, but if the organizing committee or Dentsu recognized the need, they were allowed to re-outsource to other advertising companies as "sales cooperation agents".

Around '16, the former director gathered executive officer Taniguchi and Dentsu executives at the office of Commons (Tokyo), a consulting firm he represented, and asked Dentsu executives to intervene with Ohiro as a sales partner agent in contract negotiations with language school management companies. After that, Ohiro was approved by Dentsu and the organizing committee as a sales cooperation agent, and it is said that he was in charge of negotiating the contents of the contract. The Dentsu executive is said to have given a statement admitting a series of exchanges to the Special Investigation Department's voluntary interview.

In fact, the language school management company became a sponsor, and about 52 million yen was paid to Dentsu from the sponsorship, of which about 26 million yen, half of which was paid to Ohiro. In January ~ February 22, Ohiro is said to have remitted a total of about 15 million yen four times to "Commons 2" (Tokyo), where Kazumasa Fukami (73) = re-arrested on suspicion of bribery = who is a junior at Dentsu, a former director, serves as president, and the Special Investigation Department seems to be taking it as a reward for being selected as a sales cooperation agent.

According to officials, the former board member has denied the charges, saying he "does not recognise him."