UCB’s Bimzelx emerged as a notable newcomer in August’s pharmaceutical television advertising rankings, claiming ninth place among the top spending drug brands.
The psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis medication displaced Intra-Cellular Therapies’ Caplyta from the top ten, marking one of the month’s most significant ranking shifts.
UCB invested $10.3 million to air five commercials for Bimzelx throughout August, spanning three psoriasis spots and two psoriatic arthritis-focused advertisements.
The brand’s biggest-ticket ad, fittingly titled “I’m Back,” carried an estimated spend of $2.8 million on its own, anchoring the campaign’s television presence.
August’s overall top ten list showed remarkable stability, with nine of the ten brands carrying over directly from July’s rankings without significant disruption.
Seven brands held their exact positions from the previous month, according to an iSpot.TV analysis shared with Fierce Pharma Marketing, underlining the consistency of big pharma advertising strategies.
AbbVie’s Skyrizi and Rinvoq, Johnson and Johnson’s Tremfya, Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy, Lundbeck and Otsuka’s Rexulti, and Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim’s Jardiance all held steady in first through sixth place respectively.
Beyond Bimzelx’s arrival, one of the more notable developments was a reshuffling between Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Sanofi and Regeneron’s Dupixent in the rankings.
In July, Dupixent had edged out Ozempic by nearly $5 million in TV ad spending, but August saw Novo ramp up its investment to alter that dynamic.
Bimzelx’s July spend had reached $8.2 million, meaning UCB increased its television advertising outlay by more than $2 million heading into August, signalling growing competitive pressure in the immunology market.
The broader picture suggests pharmaceutical brands are doubling down on direct-to-consumer television campaigns as competition intensifies across immunology, diabetes, and psychiatric drug categories.
UCB’s decision to accelerate Bimzelx spending reflects the increasingly crowded biologics landscape, where brand visibility during peak viewing periods can significantly influence prescribing conversations.