With polling continuing to show a majority of Japan’s population opposed to the Olympics, Toyota is sitting the Games out on the advertising front. In its home country, at least.
The Tokyo-based automaker announced on Monday that it’s pulling Olympics-related TV advertising in Japan during the Games. It will, however continue to advertise in other markets, including the United States.
Toyota’s decision arrives as the spread of COVID-19 continues to rise in Tokyo, prompting concern that the presence of the Olympics will only further the public health crisis.
With fans barred from attending the Games amid a nationwide state of emergency and lockdowns limiting business operations in Tokyo, organizers and Japan are expected to miss out on billions of dollars in revenue.
A survey conducted by the Asahi Shimbun newspaper released on Monday found that two-thirds of respondents don’t believe that Japan can host a safe and secure Olympics.
Other recent polls have shown nationwide opposition to hosting the Games ranging from 50 to 78 percent.
“Various aspects of this Olympics aren’t accepted by the public,” Toyota’s chief communications officer Jun Nagata told reporters in Japan on Monday.
Toyota is one of the International Olympic Committee’s most significant partners.
According to AP, the automaker signed an eight-year deal worth nearly $1 billion with the IOC in 2015 to become a global Olympics sponsor.
The company explained its decision to continue to advertise elsewhere in a statement.
(Yahoo sports)