NEWs...I didnt even know the super bowl was an option??
Tuesday January 20, 10:23 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: VIVUS, Inc.
VIVUS Announces Direct-to-Consumer Advertising
Campaign for its MUSE Treatment; but VIVUS Officials
Say NBC is Refusing to Air its Commercial During the
Super Bowl
NBC Says Super Bowl Audience Not Ready for Impotence
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Jan. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- VIVUS, Inc. (Nasdaq: VVUS - news)
announced today that the company will be launching a significant direct-to- consumer advertising
campaign in the coming weeks to support the marketing of its erectile dysfunction treatment,
MUSE(R) (alprostadil). However, one place consumers won't see the new MUSE(R) (alprostadil)
ad is during the Super Bowl. NBC has declined to run the MUSE impotence treatment ad based on
subject matter.
''It was disappointing to hear that NBC made this decision,'' said Julian Gangolli, Vice President of
Sales and Marketing at VIVUS, Inc. ''It is surprising that the network is not willing to let us reach
these men and encourage patients to see a doctor for treatment.''
The ad, which uses text only, will be aired starting in February on other major networks. The refusal
to air an impotence ad based on its subject matter comes at a time when health advocacy
organizations are encouraging a more frank discussion of impotence, a condition which affects an
estimated 20 million men in the United States alone.
''Impotence appears to be the last taboo subject in American society, and that's a real shame,'' said
Thomas M. Bruckman, Chief Executive Officer of the American Foundation for Urologic Disease.
''It's discouraging that NBC is not helping to get the word out on an important medical condition
and viable treatment option to millions of couples affected by this condition.'' Bruckman said less
than 10 percent of men who suffer from impotence seek treatment because the subject has not been
publicly discussed more frequently.
Gangolli says impotence is an important topic for the male viewers of the Super Bowl because
impotence affects one in 10 men by age 50 -- a large part (75%) of the Super Bowl audience.
According to Barbara Lippert of New York Magazine, ''The Super Bowl is the best place to reach
the greatest number of men -- there is no other showcase like it. I think it's very funny that NBC, the
home of Seinfeld and master of his own domain jokes, would see something like this as tasteless
and refuse to run it, when certainly the content of their sitcoms is much more risque than this.''
John Mulcahy, M.D., co-chair of the Foundation's Sexual Function Health Council, agrees. ''As a
physician who treats impotence, our main challenge is educating people on the causes and
treatments for impotence,'' he said. ''It's vital to get this type of information to the public.''
VIVUS launched its erectile dysfunction treatment, MUSE(R) (alprostadil), in January 1997. To
date, more than 650,000 patients have used MUSE(R) (alprostadil), making it the number one
prescribed treatment for erectile dysfunction by urologists in the U.S.
Since the introduction of MUSE(R) (alprostadil) to the U.S. marketplace, it is estimated that the
number of men seeing their physicians for treatment of erectile dysfunction has increased by 36
percent based on numbers of prescriptions written for erectile dysfunction treatment.
''Even though people watching the Super Bowl won't be able to hear about MUSE,'' Gangolli said,
''we will continue to aggressively try to get our message out to the public about this innovative
treatment.''
Founded in 1991, VIVUS, Inc. is a leader in the development of therapeutic systems for the
treatment of erectile dysfunction. VIVUS has pioneered a novel therapy for erectile dysfunction
known as the transurethral system for erection. This therapy consists of a proprietary, non-invasive,
drug delivery system that delivers pharmacologic agents via the urethra.
SOURCE: VIVUS, Inc. |
