Purpose

This article is intended for pharmaceutical advertisers and provides an overview of the advanced creative formats developed by Innovid to ensure compliance with pharmaceutical advertising regulations.


Overview

Video advertising efforts that support pharmaceutical drugs come with a set of opportunities and obstacles. It's a great awareness vehicle to educate patients about the benefits and uses of drugs. However, due to the health risks associated with these products, pharmaceutical advertising is heavily regulated. Here at Innovid, we have vast experience working with pharmaceutical advertisers, specifically RX brands, and helping our clients navigate this complex space. 

In order to support pharmaceutical advertisers, Innovid has developed different advanced creative formats that enable the ability to create an engaging experience for patients while also abiding by regulations. The most valuable use case is Innovid's scrolling Important Safety Information (ISI) unit. This can be built into an Overlay or Canvas format across mobile, desktop, and CTV devices.

 

Disclaimer: Brands that promote pharmaceutical drugs and use the Innovid Important Safety Information (ISI) unit, should always consult with and seek approval from their legal team before launching any campaigns and/or ads with Innovid. Innovid functions solely as a third-party ad server and is not responsible for the brand's content (images, video, text, etc.). As provided in your existing agreement with Innovid, Innovid disclaims all liability arising out of your content, including regulatory compliance associated with your industry.


Important Safety Information (ISI)

ISI enables pharmaceutical advertisers to clearly disclose associated risks for specific drugs, treatments, or devices when running advertising campaigns. There are a few specific regulations around ISIs.

  • Regulations mandate that ISIs black box drugs be prominent on the screen. We frequently see a mandate of 33% of the screen but consult with your legal team for exact dimensions. 
  • For non-black-box units, the ISI can be smaller.

Product Claim Advertisements

Product claim advertisements are used to highlight specific uses of a drug. These ads are heavily regulated and must follow specific guidelines to include the name of the drug, at least one FDA-approved use for the drug, and the most significant risks of the drug.

  • Frequently creative teams embed superimposed text that include these written disclaimers. 
  • Be aware of where superimposed text is to ensure it does not cover the content of the video. Advertisers can have creative teams embed it into the video or Innovid has the ability to implement these written disclaimers into the video in different positions as an overlay.

Testimonials

Testimonial ads feature actual patients who use the drug being advertised. These engaging videos are a great way for pharma marketers to inform and attract patients. Since these advertisements do not include medical claims and instead feature patient experiences there are different regulations.

  • Testimonial ads do not require ISIs. In addition, they do not require multiple click-outs for prescribing information. This allows advertisers to use one-click or VAST video formats. 

Publisher Management

It is important for pharmaceutical clients to ensure their media partners have the tools and inventory to support their advertising needs. 

  • Confirm that publishers support VPAID tags and have enough inventory to deliver in full. This tag type is needed to support multiple click-outs which is a requirement of RX products. Note this is not needed for OTC products or testimonial videos.  
  • It is best practice to request a test page and screenshots from publishers following launch to ensure the video is running correctly and abides by all creative guidelines. Your Innovid account manager can help request this from publishers. 

Clickthroughs and Interactivity

Clickthroughs and interactive elements must adhere to the safe zone so that important functionality or regulation-specific elements are not cropped.

Devices Specific Guidelines

Mobile

  • When scrolling ISI on overlay we aren’t able to lock in a vertical orientation. When displayed in horizontal orientation the ISI can look bad at the bottom.
  • We do not recommend canvas units for pharma on mobile.

CTV

  • QR units count as a click.
  • You do not need ISI when a creative is unbranded.

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