Compiled by Latesha Richards
Time Inc. Rebrands
Time Inc.’s Targeted Marketing Division is now Targeted Media Health, a company dedicated to serving pharma and healthcare advertisers. This new company will deliver educational and health-related content directly to consumers at multiple touch points including physician waiting rooms, homes, online and mobile, ensuring that marketers increase brand awareness and engagement. John Kenyon, Vice President, Managing Director at Targeted Media Health, is leading the business’ new direction.
Amgen To Acquire deCODE Genetics
In an all-cash transaction, Amgen has agreed to purchase the Iceland-based human genetics company deCODE for $415 million. According to Robert A. Bradway, Amgen’s President and CEO, the acquisition will enhance Amgen’s R&D efforts to identify and validate human disease targets. The deal will not require regulatory approval and is expected to close before the end of 2012, subject to customary closing adjustments.
iPhone to Surpass Desktop Use for Health Info by 2014
A mobile behavior study, which looked at 30 health-related websites and compiled data for mobile trends in various locations across North America, found that consumer usage of the iPhone for medical information increased 94% from 2011 to 2012. iPhone usage captured 41% of total mobile traffic this year and is the No. 1 consumer mobile device used to seek medical information. Rounding out the top five are the iPad (2), the iPod (3), the Sony Xperia smartphone (4) and the Samsung Galaxy smartphone (5).
Publicis Acquires Outside Line
Publicis recently purchased the British digital agency Outside Line, a specialist in social and experiential media with strengths in the areas of digital design and development, content creation, customer relations management and experience-driven social media marketing. The deal enhances Publicis’ capabilities in digital markets and its strong commitment to increasing the revenue it generates from digital and other high-growth sectors.
Survey Reveals Doctors Are Using Basic EHRs
According to the Centers for Disease Control’s National Center for Health Statistics study, which surveyed over 10,000 office-based physicians, nearly 40% of them are using an electronic health record (EHR) system on a basic level. The survey also found that 39.6% of respondents used a basic EHR system in 2012, up from 33.9% in 2011. Wisconsin had the highest percentage of office-based physicians using basic EHR systems at 70.6%, and D.C. had the lowest percentage at 22.4%.
Study Reveals Physician Reach Online
A longitudinal study that involved 1,000 U.S. physicians showed that in Q1 2012, HCP content sites reached 81% of physicians as compared to other health-related sites. Health social media sites had the highest visitation among high-prescribers. In contrast, electronic medical records (EMR) sites showed only a 4% reach, but garnered the highest visitation frequency and time spent among physicians. Physicians using tablets accessed medical records online much more than those using mobile phones.
Remedy Health Media Partners with UC Berkeley
Remedy Health Media, a health information and technology company, and University of California, Berkeley partnered to create BerkeleyWellness.com, a new, evidence-based, expert-reviewed online health resource for consumers. The site will focus on timely health and wellness information including fitness, nutrition and self-care and provide consumers with quizzes, slide shows, email alerts, social media feeds, as well as roundtables and video chats with UC Berkeley’s experts. BerkeleyWellness.com will launch in February 2013.
ViroPharma Launches New Unbranded Campaign
A new ViroPharma campaign focuses on moments lost to hereditary angioedema (HAE) attacks in order to raise awareness among physicians of the physical and emotional burden on patients’ lives. HAE is a rare, debilitating, and life-threatening genetic disorder caused by a deficiency of a human plasma protein called C1 inhibitor. Physicians can visit www.momentsmissed.com to find out more about the disease.
