The company behind Modelpress has admitted that it pitched tie-up advertising to record companies while its president served as a judge for the Japan Record Awards, an overlap that puts the award's fairness in question.
Netnative confirmed the facts in a written response to the Asahi Shimbun on November 9. Bunshun Online reported the pitches on November 7.
In its response, the company said it deeply regretted the lack of consideration. "We sincerely apologize to the Japan Composers Association, which organizes the award, to the judges, and to the companies we approached," it said.
Netnative said it has suspended sales activity to record companies.
Pitches of ¥7.5m to ¥15m a year
Bunshun Online reported that Netnative offered several record companies annual contracts worth ¥7.5 million to ¥15 million. The packages covered interview articles and videos featuring their artists.
The pitches went out while Netnative President Yoshinori Matsushita was judging a major category of the awards.
Before a judging meeting on October 23, the Japan Composers Association and others told Matsushita of concerns about the fairness of the judging, Bunshun Online reported. The judge was later replaced by a member of the Modelpress editorial team.
In its written answer, Netnative acknowledged the ad proposals and the change of judge. It said it approached six record companies and one talent agency that also functions as a record company, offering tie-up advertising on annual contracts.
Matsushita did not take part in negotiations with the record companies, according to the company. "There is no fact that he used his position as a judge to offer a deal," it said.
The company said it heard the concerns directly from the Japan Composers Association and some judges on October 23. It stopped sales activity aimed at record companies the same day.
After talks with the association and other judges, the company replaced Matsushita as judge with the editor-in-chief of Modelpress.
Netnative said it will bar sales proposals to record companies during this year's judging period. It will also enforce an internal rule separating the judge's role from sales work.
“We have had tie-up talks for individual artists before, but this was the first time we received such a large-scale proposal. The amount was too big, and the timing, during the judging period, was also too bad.”a record company official, who said Modelpress approached the company
The official spoke to the Asahi Shimbun.
The Japan Composers Association told the Asahi Shimbun it could not respond at this point because it had not been able to hold internal discussions.