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Author: Admin | 2025-04-28
Air about 300 commercials a quarter.Data from iSpot.tv, though, shows that the number of pharma companies putting up serious money on television drug ads is an even narrower group.Spending by Pfizer, Eli Lilly, AbbVie and Bristol-Myers Squib, for example, represented about 40% of the $2.81 billion spent on TV drug ads through the first nine months of 2018, according to an analysis of iSpot.tv numbersAbbVie's investment in promoting its blockbuster drug Humira (adalimumab) made up 8.5% of the total just by itself.Top 5 spenders on TV drug ads, first nine months of 2018CompanyTV ad spending for top drugsDrugs advertisedNumber of ad spotsPfizer$481 millionLyrica, Xeljanz, Ibrance and Eucrisa24Eli Lilly$318 millionTrulicity, Jardiance, Taltz and Verzenio15AbbVie$236 millionHumira15J&J$113 millionXarelto4Celgene$104 millionOtezla2Note: Pfizer's figures above don't include Eliquis, which it co-promotes with Bristol-Myers Squibb SOURCE:Data from iSpot.tvAll told, 12 drugmakers were behind the top 20 brands by ad spend, and those products accounted for three-fifths of overall investment in television DTC.Given the sums involved, it's not exactly surprising that large pharmas invest the heaviest. Still, there's a reason that it may seem the same drug ads keep coming up in TV programming.Advertising is heaviest for brands locked in battles for market shareDrug companies argue that direct-to-consumer advertisements are an important tool to raise awareness among patients that treatment options exist. Commercials can also act as a push, reminding consumers to ask their doctors about whether a drug might "be right" for them.Critics say drug ads overweigh the benefits while consigning risks to rushed voiceovers at the
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