Leading Brands in Japan’s Media & Entertainment Category: Q1 2025 Insights

In the dynamic landscape of Japan's media and entertainment industry, platforms like YouTube, NHK, and TikTok have emerged as key players. Sensor Tower's comprehensive data provides a window into their performance from Q4 2024 to Q1 2025. This article delves into the trends and insights across these platforms, highlighting their digital presence and advertising strategies.

YouTube

YouTube's digital presence remains robust, with its website youtube.com and the YouTube app maintaining significant traction.

• Audience Trends: The website consistently attracted over 60M unique visitors monthly, with a noticeable increase in March 2025, reaching over 62M. Monthly true audience figures have remained stable, hovering above 99M.

• App Engagement: The app's monthly active users remained steady, averaging around 75M throughout the quarter.

• Ad Spend & Channels: YouTube's monthly advertising spend saw a significant increase in March 2025, exceeding $600K, primarily on Instagram, generating substantial impressions.

NHK (日本放送協会)

NHK's digital platforms, including nhk.or.jp and the NHKプラス app, have shown varied performance trends.

• Audience Trends: The website experienced fluctuations, with visits peaking in October 2024 at over 82M. Monthly true audience figures were above 50M in March 2025, indicating a recovery from a dip in February.

• App Engagement: The NHKプラス app saw monthly active users fluctuate, with a notable increase to over 4.5M in March 2025.

• Ad Spend & Channels: NHK's monthly ad spend surged in March 2025 to over $400K, with significant impressions across Facebook and Instagram channels.

TikTok

TikTok's presence is marked by its websites douyin.com and tiktok.com, alongside the TikTok app.

• Audience Trends: TikTok's monthly true audience steadily increased, surpassing 31M in March 2025. Website visits showed variability, with tiktok.com attracting over 9M unique visitors monthly.

• App Engagement: The app's monthly active users rose consistently, reaching nearly 25M by March 2025.

• Ad Spend & Channels: With monthly ad spend peaking in March 2025 at over $1.2M, TikTok focused heavily on Instagram, achieving impressive reach and engagement.

Conclusion

The analysis underscores the diverse strategies employed by YouTube, NHK, and TikTok to capture and retain audiences across platforms. Sensor Tower's unique data capabilities provide critical insights into these cross-platform dynamics, offering unparalleled visibility into user engagement and advertising effectiveness in Japan's media and entertainment sector. For more detailed insights, explore our Web Insights, Pathmatics, and App Performance Insights offerings.