Rx Advertising Jumps a Staggering 31.4%

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Contact:
Matt Biscuiti
Golin/Harris International
(212) 373-6044
mbiscuiti@golinharris.com

News

April 12, 2000

Rx Advertising Jumps a Staggering 31.4%
The Category Far Exceeds the 10.3% Overall Increase

In a continuing battle to get doctors to write prescriptions for certain medications and have patients ask their doctors about specific prescription drugs, pharmaceutical manufacturers clamored for attention by spending $1.590 billion in 1999 on direct-to-consumer advertising - a 31.4% increase which earned them a tenth place ranking among major categories. This increase is far ahead of the overall advertising expenditure increase of 10.3% from 1998 according to Competitive Media Reporting (CMR), the nation's leading provider of advertising intelligence. Glaxo Wellcome PLC, increasing its advertising commitment by 33.8% over last year, outspent its closest competitor, Schering-Plough, by more than $34 million.

Schering-Plough's Claritin and Pfizer's Zyrtec - both allergy medications - framed the top 5 brands. Despite an increase from Pfizer and what seemed to be great interest in Viagra, the brand did not make the top 5 list.

For more information on industry parent and brand leaders, see the attached chart.

Competitive Media Reporting is the leading provider of strategic advertising intelligence, serving advertising agencies, advertisers, broadcasters and publishers. The company's tracking technologies collect occurrence and expenditure data, as well as the creative executions of over 900,000 brands across 15 media. CMR is headquartered in New York City and maintains sales locations in major markets throughout the United States. For further information, visit http://www.cmr.com.

Direct-to-Consumer Prescription Drugs

Rank	Parent Company	1999	1998	% Change
1	Glaxo-Wellcome PLC	223,379.40	166,975.50	33.8
2	Schering-Plough Corporation	189,155.10	209,074.50	-9.5
3	Pfizer Inc.	151,101.90	131,303.30	15.1
4	Merck & Co., Inc.	148,191.20	138,107.10	7.3
5	Astrazeneca PLC	139,636.40	99,910.00	39.8
($000)

Rank	Brand	1999	1998	% Change
1	Claritin Allergy Rx	123,438.20	136,379.30	-9.5
2	Prilosec Heartburn Rx	79,435.80	49,736.10	59.7
3	Xenical Fat Blocker Rx	76,152.90	71.9	105,815
4	Propecia Hair Loss Rx	71,116.40	90,969.20	-21.8
5	Zyrtec Allergy Rx	57,068.40	75,235.00	-24.1
($000)

Editor's Note:
Additional expenditure reports and analyses are available by calling Daniel Prince & Associates — (212) 213-9060.