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The pharmaceutical industry has released draft guidelines that endorse a waiting period between a drug’s release and the beginning of advertising, according to the New York Times. The guidelines say that, during the waiting period, drug makers should have conversations with physicians to help them understand the drugs before consumers start asking for them. Facing growing pressure from Capitol Hill and the American Medical Association, the issue of a mandatory waiting period has become a hot topic; last month, Bristol-Myers Squibb adopted its own voluntary 12-month wait between product debut and advertising.
The Consumers Union prescription drug reform effort, Prescription for Change, says that the industry’s new proposal is “a placebo that will have little impact on informing consumers about the real effectiveness of drugs or their possible safety risks.”
“What we clearly need is more authority and resources to ensure that all marketing, not just the amount spent on direct-to-consumer advertising, is honest and accurate,” says Rob Schneider, director of the reform effort.
Radio stations in the U.K. reacted with outrage when they learned of a report by researchers from the University of the West of England which accused them of promoting excessive drinking.
The study looked at 1,200 hours of radio output,…
General Motors posted sales of 308,817 vehicles in August. That’s a drop of 20 percent from August of last year - but 31 percent better than July.
In order to boost sales as much as possible during a time when…
A new digital out-of-home network to reach golfers is launching to 100 retail locations in the next two months. The network will be available in Dunham’s Sporting Goods, Golf Etc., Golf USA, Pro Golf, and ParMasters, among others.
Fox says that viewers’ attention to commercials is higher when fewer commercials are aired. The revelation comes as a result of testing the network has done for its freshman thriller, Fringe, which will premiere Sept. 9 with limited commercials and shorter…
Worldwide sales of mobile phones will reach 1.28 billion units in 2008 - up from 1.15 billion units in 2007 - an 11 percent increase from last year, according to Gartner, Inc - (via MarketingCharts).
While the mobile phone market is poised for…
Consumers in all income segments are cutting back spending, and doing so to a greater extent recently than at the beginning of the second quarter, according to a comScore study examining changes in consumer attitudes and perceptions about the U.S. economy…
