OnHealth.com Adds Procter & Gamble, Glaxo Wellcome as Advertisers

Seattle-based IVI Publishing said that Procter & Gamble and Glaxo Wellcome have signed on as advertisers and sponsors for its award-winning Web site, OnHealth.com.

The new advertisers join OnHealth.com as the site gears up for a sweeping redesign and relaunch slated for early summer, the company said.

Tim Walsh, vice president of sales at IVI Publishing, said, “Under revamped FDA guidelines, consumer drug ads can now contain both the name of the drug and the ailment, provided that advertisers point consumers to further information and major side effects. As Business Week reported on March 30, this has enabled radio and TV drug advertising to more than double to $167 million last year, and is expected to reach the billion-dollar mark this year.”

Procter & Gamble will place an ad for Olean, the company’s new, no-fat cooking oil, throughout the site. Glaxo Wellcome will advertise several of its key brands, including Flonase, an allergy relief nasal spray, Zyban for smoking cessation and Imitrex for migraine relief. Spending was not disclosed.

P & G and Glaxo will join OnHealth.com’s other pharmaceutical sponsors Hoechst Marion Roussel, makers of Allegra allergy treatment, and Hoffmann-La Roche, which recently expanded its OnHealth.com sponsorship to include advertising for Accutane.