Nippon TV Questions Segment Praising Sponsor McDonald’s

The program also included taste-testing of the products

The Consumer Affairs Agency’s website states:

“As of October 1, 2023, stealth marketing is considered a violation of the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations.”

“Regulations under this law apply to advertisements that consumers cannot recognize as advertisements. This includes not only online content such as social media posts and reviews but also advertisements in television, newspapers, radio, and magazines.”

In other words, the government has been strictly warning against stealth marketing.

“It appears that McDonald’s did not request this segment on Miyaneya, nor was it a sponsored project. Instead, the production team simply thought it was an interesting topic and decided to cover it. While they did obtain permission from McDonald’s for on-site filming, there was no detailed coordination, and taste-testing was conducted independently by the program. In fact, McDonald’s even raised concerns about the interview methods, lodging a mild complaint. As a result, a warning was issued internally to avoid creating similarly misleading segments that could be mistaken for stealth marketing in the future,” said a Nippon TV insider.

Given the circumstances, this case likely does not qualify as stealth marketing. However, how did viewers feel about this segment, which enthusiastically praised a sponsor’s product within the program?

Nippon TV was asked whether it had suspected Miyaneya’s segment of stealth marketing, whether it had pointed this out to Yomiuri TV, and whether it planned to conduct further investigations. However, no response was received by the deadline.

Following the broadcast, the impact on the featured store in Toyonaka City was immense. Even after lunchtime on weekdays, long lines persisted, and customers reportedly had to wait one to two hours to purchase food. Regardless of the controversy, the promotional effect was undeniable.