Ferguson Launches OTC Center of Excellence

PARSIPPANY, NJ--(Marketwire - September 2, 2009) - Ferguson, the founding professional agency of CommonHealth, today announced the launch of the Ferguson OTC (over-the-counter) Center of Excellence, a new initiative designed to address the rapid increase of promotion and use of OTC drugs. Within Ferguson, the Center of Excellence will focus on the marketing of prescription-to-OTC switches and the promotion of OTC brands to healthcare practitioners.

CommonHealth (www.commonhealth.com) is the world's leading healthcare-communications network and a WPP (NASDAQ: WPPGY) (www.wpp.com) company.

"The role of self-care has become increasingly important in treating common medical conditions, especially in this economy. Currently, the U.S. leads the rest of the world in the use of OTC products to treat most common conditions, and we think this trend will only continue to grow," said Chris Tama, president of Ferguson.

"The Ferguson OTC Center of Excellence is a direct reflection of our creative and strategic muscle. We have the advertising bravado and the scientific acumen to navigate the path along the Rx/OTC continuum," noted John Nosta, chief strategic officer.

The OTC Center of Excellence group will be led by advertising industry veteran Brian Doherty, executive vice president, director, client services. Mr. Doherty is a recognized expert in the marketing of OTC brands to professionals and has led this growth sector within the agency for more than 12 years.

In total, the group has more than 35 years of experience in the OTC allergy, pain management, antacid, oral care, female healthcare, dermatology, hair restoration and pediatric brand categories, among others. Ferguson was also responsible for leading the marketing efforts on two of the most successful prescription-to-OTC conversions in history.

CommonHealth comprises Ferguson, Altum, Carbon, CommonHealth London, CommonHealth Paris, Conectics, Earthborn, EvoLogue, HLS, MBS/Vox, ProCom, Qi, Solara and Valos. The organization also maintains numerous partnerships both within and outside of the WPP network of companies.