Designing
New Context
Designing
New Context
[Serials: The Future of Digital Advertising]
What role should digital advertising play and how must it be transformed in today’s online environment that is overrun with malicious media, including fake news and fraudulent articles written with generative artificial intelligence (AI)?
This series examines these issues and looks toward the future via interviews with members of the Quality Media Consortium, which was founded by advertising and media companies striving to build a healthy media environment.
Mediagene was among the first to pivot from print to digital, launching prominent web media brands such as Business Insider Japan and Gizmodo Japan. Despite the constant upheaval in the media landscape, the company has steadily grown by staying ahead of change. In December 2024, just one year after merging with Taiwan’s TNL Group, they achieved a major milestone—listing on NASDAQ as TNL Mediagene. We spoke with Motoko Imada, the company’s President and COO, about the values and strengths that power this globally ambitious media organization.
President and COO, TNL Mediagene Inc. / CEO, Mediagene Inc.
Motoko Imada
Motoko Imada began her career in the publishing industry, working on book and magazine production and negotiating overseas publishing rights. In 1994, she helped launch the Japanese edition of WIRED, serving as its Business Manager. She later founded what is now Mediagene Inc. (formerly Infobahn Group) in 1998 as a digital media company, and in 2015 spun off Infobahn Inc. as a dedicated digital agency. In 2023, she co-founded TNL Mediagene and assumed the roles of President and COO.
“I started out in publishing, working on print magazines and launching “the Japanese edition of WIRED.” It was during that time I became convinced that eventually, all information would go digital.”
From its founding in 1998, Mediagene has built a diverse portfolio of digital media brands. These include “Gizmodo Japan,” covering cutting-edge tech and gadgets; “Business Insider Japan,” focused on finance and economics; “Lifehacker Japan,” which shares life and work tips; and “Roomie,” a lifestyle magazine that offers comfort-first inspiration. Imada’s experience as a publisher has contributed to her unique style of developing multiple media brands that transcend genre boundaries.
“In traditional publishing, magazines are often tailored to different communities and interests. Translating that into digital media—expanding our portfolio online—was a very natural evolution.”
Behind the company’s continued growth in the rapidly changing media industry is its thorough user-oriented approach and flexible media management tailored to the needs of users. “Our guiding principle has always been: What truly matters? We’ve constantly evolved with the times to ensure we deliver trustworthy, meaningful content in the way users want to receive it. If that format changes, then we adapt our media model accordingly.”
While the web has seen an influx of clickbait and low-quality content, Mediagene has held firm in prioritizing credibility. “We believe the media has the power to shape people’s lives. That’s why we take our responsibility seriously—ensuring accuracy, transparency, and respect for the reader.”
Another crucial element is the reader’s perspective. “It’s about seeing things from the reader’s perspective and thinking alongside them. In a world where anyone can be a content creator, how do we earn their trust? We believe it starts with relatability—readers need to feel we’re just like them. We share their questions and their excitement. And from that shared space, we deliver insights only a professional media organization can uncover. The media has a personality. And shaping that personality is essential.”
Mediagene has not only diversified its media portfolio but also expanded into e-commerce and product development tailored to each brand. Yet to ensure the sustainability of the business, Imada knew it had to look outward.
“If I were to keep running this company alone, there would eventually be an end. I wanted to create something that could outlast me. But sustaining growth as a single Japanese company, in a shrinking market, is incredibly tough. Japan’s population is declining, and sticking solely to Japanese-language content limits our audience. So we worked backward from the question: What does long-term survival require? The answer was global expansion—and going public.”
In May 2023, Mediagene merged with Taiwan’s media company TNL Group to form TNL Mediagene. The following year, the company completed a merger with U.S.-based SPAC, Blue Ocean Acquisition Corp., culminating in its NASDAQ listing in December 2024. Now with a combined reach of 40 million unique users, the company aims to scale its multilingual content strategy, particularly targeting the global Chinese-speaking audience.
The merger between Japan’s and Taiwan’s leading media innovators has unlocked significant potential. “We’ve gained new assets and the ability to combine diverse resources to create new business opportunities,” says Imada.
“Multilingual expansion and integrating knowledge and culture across borders have always been necessary—but until recently, language barriers made it difficult. Now with AI, those barriers are starting to fall. Our merger with TNL and entry into NASDAQ represent a major upgrade to our business infrastructure. We’re now in a position to grow through mutual influence. As a media company born in Asia, we’re committed to sharing accurate, trustworthy information with the world.”
One of the strengths of Mediagene’s future overseas expansion is its expertise in content-driven commerce which the company has cultivated. Imada is confident that trust and brand equity will remain the core of advertising value, even in digital spaces.
“Digital advertising excels at delivering metrics—but it often fails to capture qualitative value. Branding impact isn’t always reflected in numbers, and so optimization becomes the sole focus. Human emotion gets left behind. But we’ve proven that brand power rooted in trust can drive revenue—this is a completely different context from click-through rates.”
She warns against reducing advertising value to metrics like impressions or PVs alone, noting the risks of inadvertently funding disinformation or unethical media. She wonders if this is really in the best interest of advertisers. “In the past, advertisers and agencies carefully managed placements across TV, newspapers, and magazines to avoid reputational risk. Yet today, despite being the dominant format, digital ads still lack adequate controls. The whole ecosystem—advertisers, agencies, platforms, and media—needs to work together to protect reputable brands.”
Maintaining high-quality media is essential for producing information that benefits society. She talks about the significance of the “Quality Media Consortium” formed by BI.Garage and major media outlets, which seeks to improve the value of both Web content and advertising.
“People might think content can be cranked out with AI—but truly valuable content comes from networks, effort, and editorial judgment. That’s what our consortium members represent: media that understand what values must be protected and what responsibility they carry. From such media comes trust and engagement. This consortium guarantees a certain level of content quality and creates a safe environment for advertising, and we hope that promotions will be developed in such places.”
The ecosystem is changing, slowly but surely. She concludes with conviction: “The current state of digital advertising is far from ideal—but that only strengthens our resolve to improve it. I truly believe that by working alongside other quality media producers, we can help shape a better society, align with business needs, and protect democracy. For our part, we’ll continue to be a media brand people can trust—never losing sight of our core, while exploring new paths to grow.”
Related Articles：
・[The Future of Digital Advertising #03] The Asahi Shimbun Considers the Value of Newspapers and Ads in the Digital Era（December 17, 2024）
・[The Future of Digital Advertising #01] Shifting From Click-focused Advertising to Media Quality（May 29, 2024）
・[The Future of Digital Advertising #02] Companies Need Advertising Strategies to Protect Brand Value（June 3, 2024）
Jointly administered by 32 leading media companies, this organization was founded by BI.Garage to improve the quality of Japanese digital advertising. It is the only ad network that works to provide the highest-quality advertisements by focusing on the quality of ads and the mediums where they are delivered.
