Dive Brief:
- Direct-to-consumer TV drug advertising slowed marginally in December, notching $107 million in spending compared to $114 million a month prior, according to data compiled by iSpot.tv in conjunction with FiercePharmaMarkting.
- Pfizer and Bristol-Myers Squibb's spent the most for marketing of their co-promoted anticoagulant Eliquis, buying about $16 million worth of TV advertising.
- Pfizer spent heavily on ads in December, with 5 of its ads making iSpot.tv's top ten.
Dive Insight:
iSpot.tv's list reflects trends in seasonality, epidemiology, and aspirations associated with the new year. Prevnar, Pfizer's pneumococcal pneumonia vaccine, was in the second spot, with a spend of $14.4 million—a clear association with the height of flu season.
Three drugs in the top 10—Toujeo, Farxiga and Invokana (from Johnson & Johnson)—are for treatment of type 2 diabetes, reflecting a high prevalence in the U.S. and an understanding that people with type 2 diabetes are interested in learning about new treatment options.
Finally, high spending on ads for a drug like the smoking cessation med Chantix (ranked #5 in ad spend) may be tapping into the tendency to make life resolutions for the new year.