The joint-venture was formed through the setting-up of Chusen Media K.K.
as a media planning and buying specialist with Aegis, Carat's
parent.
From Carat's viewpoint, a key asset of Chusen is the established relationships it has in place with some 200 media companies in Japan. The two already have a similar joint-venture in Thailand.
Shigeru Ozawa, Chuo Senko's president, will be president of Chusen,
while Kim Walker, president of Carat-SPI, will be a director. "Our
immediate priority will be to absorb and apply as much of the global
best practices from Carat that we think can be effectively applied in
the Japanese market,
said Ozawa. Chusen will operate independently of Carat-SPI, Carat's existing media planning company in Japan. "The two will not merge,
said Walker.
"As Chusen grows, Carat-SPI will develop as a strategic brand planning consultancy."
Aegis recently launched Research Fact, a research company in Japan. The investment in Chusen now makes Japan its leading revenue earner in Asia-Pacific, company sources said.
