Heartburn ad wars
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
Currently airing fifteen-second Maximum Strength Pepcid AC spot depicts a pen scrawling on the heartburn medication's labeling so that the "P" in Pepcid becomes "Rx." An accompanying voiceover says: "Now there's a prescription-strength Pepcid AC for your heartburn. New Maximum Strength Pepcid AC. With twice the strength of the original. Pepcid. Just one...and heartburn's done." In the ad, Johnson & Johnson compares the line extension to original Pepcid AC without making comparisons to competing products such as Procter & Gamble's Prilosec OTC. Tums manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline, meanwhile, is taking the head-to-head approach by making comparisons to both Pepcid AC and Prilosec OTC in its advertising (1"The Tan Sheet" Oct. 6, 2003, In Brief)...