WSJ examines drugmakers' use of 'unbranded product advertising' to promote disease awareness, treatment options

The Wall Street Journal on Friday examined "unbranded product advertising" for brand-name drugs, which allow drugmakers to drive television viewers to Web sites promoting drugs without the requirement of listing the products' side effects in the TV advertisement.

FDA rules state that if an advertisement does not name a drug directly, it does not need to include a listing of possible side effects. According to the Journal, the strategy is "gaining popularity" among drugmakers because listing the side effects "chew[s] up expensive television time." For example, a 60-second ad for Eli Lilly's osteoporosis drug Evista spends 25 seconds listing side effects.

The Journal profiled two unbranded ads by Pfizer and Sanofi Aventis. The Pfizer ad is a 60-second spot in which a female character discusses her smoking habit and viewers are directed to the Web site www.mytimetoquit.com. Upon visiting the Web site, consumers find a link to another Web site for the smoking cessation drug Chantix, which includes a full listing of side effects. Chantix had sales of $883 million in 2007 but had been "losing ground" because of recent reports linking the medication to suicide, suicidal behavior and drowsiness. The ad first was run in 2006 -- a few months after the release of Chantix -- but a new ad for the drug appeared after the drug gained in popularity. After a study linked the drugs to several accidents related to drowsiness and federal aviation regulations banned pilots from using it, the My Time to Quit ad reappeared, the Journal reports.

The Lilly ad is a 15-second spot in which viewers are directed to the Web site www.silenceyourrooster.com. The Web site, which promotes the sleeping aid Ambien, received more than 400,000 hits in the ad's first seven days on the air this month.

Comments

Bob Erlich of DTC Perspectives said, "There's a risk [drugmakers] could rouse congressional ire over cute commercials that don't emphasize medicine." Duke University's Ruth Day, a frequent critic of direct-to-consumer ads for drugs, said the Pfizer ad and Web site provided useful information and made side effects clear.

Pfizer spokesperson Sally Beatty said, "The goal of the My Time to Quit campaign is to encourage people to quit smoking," not to advertise the company's product or get around FDA rules. She added, "My Time to Quit is designed to encourage people who are thinking about quitting to speak to their health care providers about the benefits of quitting smoking and available treatment options."

Rich Gagnon, of the ad agency Draft FCB, whose clients include several drugmakers, said, "Imagine paying millions to run that ad campaign and having to use up 30 seconds to list all the problems" (Mundy, Wall Street Journal, 8/29).