Main Subject - Internet and Businesses Online

Until recently, audio, video, Flash, and static graphics were all independent components used as enhancements to text based messages on the Internet. We’re now seeing technological breakthroughs that allow us to combine these various elements into exciting web-based presentations that not only si

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

mulate our television experience but also take us to a whole new level of user interactivity. This technology is called Rich Media.

Rich Media is comprised of a combination of audio, video, graphics, and other techniques that, when put together, create an Internet experience that is personal, re

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

evant, and largely unmatched by other print or broadcast media.

Rich Media is in its infancy but companies cannot afford to ignore its’ potential impact as a business tool. The “dot bomb” crash in April, 2000, notwithstanding, the Internet is still the fastest growing medium in history and conti

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

ues to attract thousands of new users everyday.

Most of us come to the Web to perform specific tasks. We send mail, we read the news, and we research topics of interest. We also come to the Web to browse and shop for goods and services. The Internet, unlike other forms of media, allows us to tak

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

immediate action. We’re urged to click on banners, click on text links, write letters to the editor, create greeting cards, and upload our family pictures for the world to see. Is it any wonder that we have higher expectations of the Web than we do from browsing the newspaper or passively watchi

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

g TV?

We are only beginning to understand how Internet advertising works and how it differs from that in the offline world. We do know that we’ve come a long way from the traditional banner ad which has been steadily losing its’ effectiveness. When banner ads first appeared, they were a novelty

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

, and click-thru rates were satisfyingly high. As the banner ad proliferated, and websites became increasingly cluttered, click-thru rates plummeted forcing advertisers to look for new ways to engage consumers.

Much has been written and said about the state of e-commerce and the emerging trend t

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

at puts consumers in a position of power as never before. The need to service, retain, and communicate with these consumers in more meaningful ways has provided the impetus behind the Rich Media movement.

Not only can we use Rich Media to attract consumers; we can craft messages that invite the

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

isitor to interact with the message to obtain additional information or to take a desired action. Purchases could be made directly in the ad or banner window. A user could subscribe directly to a newsletter. Games could be demonstrated. Streaming audio or video clips could be viewed. And, all

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

of this could be done without ever leaving the publisher’s site. (A huge advantage for site owners.)

As the visitor enters a site, Rich Media can be deployed to inform him of weekly specials or product specific promotions. One click could then take him directly to the place where he can obtain

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

urther information about that product and order it. If the product is a complicated one requiring demonstration, he could be given the option of viewing a Flash or streaming presentation of the product being assembled. Text boxes could be synchronized with the demo to scroll frequently asked que

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

stions and answers about the product.

Pop-up windows, albeit annoying to some, have proven to be an effective method of engaging the consumer. These windows, known as intersitials or supersitials, are done with streaming audio, video or Flash, and usually appear when the user’s browser is loadin

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

another page making that user a captive audience.

This kind of interactivity is what makes Rich Media advertising truly unique.

Many potential advertisers hesitate about venturing into Rich Media due to bandwidth constraints and the lack of widely available “high speed” connections. But broadb

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

nd services are starting to spread, and, by 2004, 30 millions households should have broadband access. Business users will drive the trend. As more people experience media delivered via broadband in the workplace, they will demand that same experience on their home computers. (Currently there

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

re 30 million workplace computers with broadband access compared to 4 million households.) *

One of the issues that have worried Web publishers is how to create “stickiness.” Rich Media, used to deliver content as well as advertising, provides the tool. People are sensory by nature and respond

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

ore emotionally to sound and moving objects than they do to still images and static text. Since most purchasing is done on an emotional level, Rich Media presentations often provide that extra impetus to close the sale.

As site publishers and advertisers become more familiar with Rich Media and

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

its’ interactive nature, we’ll begin to see more sophisticated methods of engaging the visitor emerge. Using extensive databases based on consumer preferences and lifestyles, advertisers will be able to deliver highly targeted messages. (We’ve already seen this begin to happen as Internet radio

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

stations insert customized messages to generate advertising revenue.) Retailers will employ Rich Media techniques to offer better customer service and to fine-tune their product offerings. Educators will use it to make their sites more meaningful and add interactivity to workbooks and lessons.

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

t’s clear that advertisers and site publishers will have to weigh the costs of producing Rich Media versus the benefits that they hope to receive. As technology moves inexorably forward, however, and bandwidth becomes more plentiful, users will come to have higher and more sophisticated expectati

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

ns of what they see and hear on the Web. The opportunities afforded by Rich Media – interactivity, sound, motion, and text all bundled into one smoothly delivered presentation – cannot be ignored.

* Cahners In-Stat group at http://www.instat.com

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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Main Subject - Rich Media - Exploring New Territory

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