Word: heartburns
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...stomach acid." "It's the world's first acid blocker." Then, against the glowing corona of a totally eclipsed sun, "And now it's available without a prescription." Finally the eclipsed image resolves into the illustration on a drug package labeled Tagamet HB, under which is inscribed, "Now for heartburn...
This rousing commercial, Tagamet's first, and others saturating the networks are the opening guns in what promises to be an unprecedented war for the minds of heartburn sufferers. The combatants are pharmaceutical companies jockeying for position in a new, lucrative over-the-counter market for drugs that provide long-lasting relief from heartburn, a condition that at least occasionally affects as many as one-fifth of all Americans. Their weapons, in addition to TV commercials, include a plethora of print advertisements--as well as suits and countersuits in the courts. Their goal: to capture the largest possible share...
...latest major drug to be considered for the switch is Zantac, an anti-ulcer medication manufactured by Glaxo. Just two weeks ago, two advisory panels to the FDA gave preliminary approval for it to be sold over the counter as a heartburn remedy. Final approval from the fda, which normally concurs with its advisers' recommendations, could set the stage for a marketing war next year among three pharmaceutical giants for dominance of the $1 billion market for heartburn drugs...
...race to corner the heartburn market, Merck's Pepcid and SmithKline Beecham's Tagamet have the early lead. Both drugs boasted stellar records as anti-ulcer drugs in the prescription market and gained final U.S. approval for over-the-counter sales in April and June, respectively. Despite Zantac's late start, its popularity may enable it to overtake its rivals. Currently, it is the world's best-selling prescription drug. Analysts expect the three manufacturers together to spend some $300 million to tout their products...
...says Ford vice president Tom Wagner, who heads the automaker's customer-satisfaction operations. Chrysler sales vice president Tom Pappert agrees: "We have got to get away from intimidation. Even for people who don't mind shopping and bargain hunting, it's the distrust factor that causes the heartburn...