Skyrizi was the biggest drug by TV ad spend in April, and Rinvoq took the crown in May; either way, AbbVie stays on top as it continues its DTC spending spree.
AbbVie spent $32.8 million on its JAK inhibitor Rinvoq in May, up from $28.6 million in April. In May, the company spent $28.4 million on ads for Skyrizi, its second major immunology blockbuster, putting it in third place for the month. That number is down from the $29.8 million AbbVie spent on Skyrizi ads in April.
In the middle of this AbbVie sandwich is Sanofi and Regeneron’s immunology rival Dupixent, with the pair spending $31.8 million on TV ads for the drug last month, massively up from $23.8 million in April.
We also saw the return of Novo Nordisk’s major diabetes drugs that for years have seen some of the highest DTC spend, but in 2023 have more often than not fallen out of the top 10 lists.
That changed in May as Novo’s oral GLP-1 diabetes drug Rybelsus climbed the ranks into fourth place, up from ninth in April and with a huge uptick in spend, from $12.9 million in April to $23.4 million in May.
It was a similar story for its injectable GLP-1 diabetes drug Ozempic, coming in sixth place after not being listed in April, with spend hitting $15.7 million, up from $10.1 million in April.
In between these two diabetes giants is Rexulti, Otsuka and Lundbeck’s bipolar and schizophrenia therapy, up three spots in May and with $3.8 million in extra spending, likely coming as it dovetailed its messaging during Mental Health Awareness Month in May.
Down three places, and one of the few drugs in the top 10 to see a fall in spend, is GSK’s respiratory disease therapy Trelegy. Ad spend for Eli Lilly’s new diabetes drug Mounjaro was also down, though by just $500,000, but still enough to see it too sink three places on April.
It’s a similar story with Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim’s diabetes drug Jardiance, which was flat in spending, but still fell two places month over month as other companies boosted their budgets.
Alkermes’ two-year-old bipolar therapy Lybalvi rounded out the top 10 in May. The drug didn't make April's list and is rarely seen in the top 10, though spending in May was likely boosted by Mental Health Awareness Month. Total spend on Lybalvi ads jumped from nothing in April to $12.4 million in May. Every cent of that cash was funneled into its new spot, “Help to Push Back,” which launched at the start of May.
Total spend for the top 10 in May hit $203.1 million, a big jump on the $177.3 million spent during April, as pharmas appear to be digging a little deeper into their ad spend budgets.
Check out the top 10, as complied for Fierce Pharma Marketing by real-time ad trackers at iSpot, below.
1. Rinvoq
Movement: Up one spot
What is it? AbbVie JAK inhibitor immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $32.8 million (up from $28.6 million in April)
Number of spots: Three (one eczema, one arthritis, one ulcerative colitis)
Biggest-ticket ad: “Disrupts My Skin” (est. $13.9 million)
2. Dupixent
Movement: Up one spot
What is it? Sanofi and Regeneron immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $31.8 million (up from $23.8 million in April)
Number of spots: 10 (four asthma, six eczema)
Biggest-ticket ad: “DU More: Diving Board, Soccer and Playground” (est. $8.3 million)
3. Skyrizi
Movement: Down two spots
What is it? AbbVie immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $28.4 million (down from $29.8 million in April)
Number of spots: Nine (five psoriasis, one Crohn’s disease, three psoriatic arthritis)
Biggest-ticket ad: “Roller Coaster” (est. $10.9 million)
4. Rybelsus
Movement: Up five spots
What is it? Novo Nordisk oral GLP-1 diabetes drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $23.4 million (up from $12.9 million in April)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “Need to Get Your A1C Down?” (est. $23.4 million)
5. Rexulti
Movement: Up three spots
What is it? Otsuka and Lundbeck bipolar and schizophrenia drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $16.7 million (up from $12.9 million in April)
Number of spots: Three
Biggest-ticket ad: “Build on Your Progress” (est. $9.6 million)
6. Ozempic
Movement: Not listed in April
What is it? Novo Nordisk injectable GLP-1 diabetes drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $15.7 million (up from $10.1 million in April)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “Discover the Power of Three” (est. $15.7 million)
7. Trelegy
Movement: Down three spots
What is it? GSK respiratory disease therapy
Est. national TV ad spend: $14.7 million (down from $15.9 million in April)
Number of spots: Three
Biggest-ticket ad: “Concert” (est. $9.1 million)
8. Mounjaro
Movement: Down three spots
What is it? Eli Lilly diabetes drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $14.2 million (down from $14.7 million in April)
Number of spots: Two
Biggest-ticket ad: “What If” (est. $12.2 million)
9. Jardiance
Movement: Down two spots
What is it? Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly diabetes drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $13 million (flat from April)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “Musical” (est. $13 million)
10. Lybalvi
Movement: Not listed in April
What is it? Alkermes bipolar therapy
Est. national TV ad spend: $12.4 million (up from $0 in April)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “Help to Push Back” (est. $12.4 million)