Japanese Thigh Billboards: Companies Advertise on Women's Legs (VIDEO)
Japanese thigh billboards could be the newest advertising style to become popular in the Asian company after a public relations firm coined the idea. "Zettai ryouiki," the Japanese term for the space between a woman's miniskirt and her thigh-high stockings, is popular there, and one advertisement agency is looking to take advantage.
The Japanese thigh billboards were the brainchild of advertising agency WIT and PR firm Absolute Territory. Young women are paid to have stickers with advertisements put on their thighs, then they must walk around the city for at least eight hours, put up two pictures of the ads on social media sites, and have at least 20 social media friends, according to Yahoo! News.
"Tokyo is so saturated with marketing that getting eyeballs on ads has become a huge challenge," Hidenori Atsumi, the CEO of WIT, told The New Zealand Herald. "Interestingly one never tires of looking at girls' legs— hence the thighvertising."
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"It's an absolutely perfect place to put an advertisement, as it is what guys are eager to look at," he continued.
The going rate for the Japanese thigh billboards is between $13 and $128 per day— presumably based upon the woman's whereabouts while wearing the stickers and the attention it receives. So far over 3,000 women have inquired with the advertising agency and over 1,300 have registered, according to Daily Mail.
"It's like a new sort of fashion, and I never found it off-putting in the least," said Asahi Shimbum Kaori Oe, 22. She has worn the stickers twice so far. "Not only men but also young women cast glances at me."
"I wouldn't do this is they put it on my belly or places I'm embarrassed to expose. But if it's on my chubby thighs, what's the problem?" another participant was quoted by Science World Report.
So far ads have promoted the movie "Ted," the band Green Day, and various other products. All girls must be 18 to participate.
