By KAHO MATSUDA/ Staff Writer
November 2, 2024 at 16:41 JST
The Tokyo metropolitan government building will soon display ads on the facade of its 243-meter-tall building in Shinjuku Ward to offset the expenses from a dazzling projection mapping project designed to attract tourists.
It set aside 950 million yen ($6.2 million) in the current fiscal year budget for the projection mapping that kicked off nightly in February. Total costs over a two-year period are estimated to hit 4.8 billion yen, leading to criticism the project is too expensive.
As one way to improve the cost-effectiveness of the project the metropolitan government will begin selling ad time. The ads, ranging from 15 seconds to up to 5 minutes, would be shown between the regular programming.
The cost of the ads will vary depending on the length of the ads, when it is shown and over how long a period. A 15-second ad will cost between 530,000 yen and 2.21 million yen.
A metropolitan government official in charge of the project said ads shown in movie theaters and at commercial outdoor displays were taken into consideration in setting the ad prices.
Although outdoor advertising is restricted in the Nishi-Shinjuku area where the metropolitan government building is located, special approval for the ads during projection mapping was obtained in October from an advisory panel.
The first projection mapping show in February was certified by Guinness World Records as the largest architectural projection mapped display in a permanent exhibition.
Among the programs shown so far are a clip from the latest Godzilla movie as well as from the Pacman video game.
Metropolitan government officials said about 390,000 people had viewed the projection mapping by the end of October.
A high-ranking official brushed aside speculation that the ads were a response to the criticism about the high cost of the project.
“Because many people have visited the area, the government building has become recognized as an advertising tower,” the official said. “We always considered from the very beginning that ads are one way to improve the cost-effectiveness of a major tourism resource.”
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Projection mapping on the side of the Tokyo metropolitan government building shows a scene from a recent Godzilla movie. (Kaho Matsuda)
