News from Business Wire

CommonHealth's Ferguson Celebrates 30th Anniversary

Wednesday, December 22, 2004

PARSIPPANY, N.J. (Business Wire) -- CommonHealth today announced that Ferguson (Thomas Ferguson Associates), its founding professional advertising and promotion unit, is celebrating its 30th anniversary.

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

Founded in 1974 by Thomas G. Ferguson, the agency was one of the first in the healthcare communications industry to establish offices in New Jersey to be closer to prospective pharmaceutical clients. This close proximity helped build a respectable client roster that has grown year after year and currently comprises relationships with Berlex Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, GlaxoSmithKline, Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Ortho Biotech Products LP, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical Inc. (both Johnson & Johnson companies), Schering-Plough Corporation, Tibotec Therapeutics (also a Johnson & Johnson company) and ZLB Behring, among others.

In 1993, the Ferguson Communications Group of companies (consisting of Ferguson, ProCom and a number of other business units evolving from the desire to address client needs outside of the professional advertising realm) allied with HLS (Health Learning Systems), a sister medical education company within the WPP Group, to establish the CommonHealth network. To date, 10 operating units have sprung from this initial union, each the result of organic growth, not acquisition.

"Very few agencies have stood the test of time and the ever-changing, evolving trends of the pharmaceutical marketplace the way Ferguson has," noted David Chapman, president of the agency. "The fact that we're still around and thriving as one of the most respected and trusted agencies in the industry is a testimony to Tom Ferguson and the ways in which his vision continues to influence us. Ferguson is, and will remain, a leader in the pharmaceutical marketing industry because of the enduring values it was built upon."

CommonHealth comprises Ferguson, ProCom, HLS, Adient, Carbon, Conectics, MBS/Vox, Noesis, Qi, Quantum, Solara and Xchange. The organization also maintains numerous partnerships both within and outside of the WPP Group network of companies.

CommonHealth
Rachel Arnold/Beth Paulino, 973-884-2200