Yutaka Narita, a former president of Dentsu Inc. and chairman of the Japan Advertising Agencies Association, died Sunday of pneumonia at a Tokyo hospital on Sunday, Dentsu said. He was 82.
Narita, who was born in the Korean city of Cheonan in 1929, joined the top advertising agency in 1953 after graduating with a degree in law from the University of Tokyo.
After working in a Dentsu section dealing with ads for newspapers, he assumed the presidency in 1993. During his tenure, the company made its debut on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange in November 2001. He became chairman the following year.
Under his stewardship, Dentsu actively extended its business into overseas markets such as China and South Korea, as well as playing a role in arranging the cohosting of the 2002 World Cup with South Korea.