Feature15 April 2020

Setting a manifesto

Emma Cooper

The first senior female executive retreat from WIRe this side of the Atlantic took place at the end of last year. Emma Cooper was one of the organisers and here she describes what unfolded.

News31 March 2020

Cuebiq offers free insights

Location and consumer insights business Cuebiq has released its insights into mobility and store visitation patterns free of charge during the Covid-19 pandemic.

News31 March 2020

WPP looks to £700m+ savings

Jane Bainbridge

Advertising giant, WPP, has introduced cost savings including freezing new hires, stopping discretionary costs, postponing salary increases and a 20% drop in exec salaries, to save more than £700m in 2020.

News31 March 2020

SurveyMonkey adds to leadership team

Global survey software company, SurveyMonkey, has made new additions to its senior team with Karen Budell as vice-president of brand marketing, Gary Fuges as vice-president of investor relations and Amit Sethi as vice-president of data.

News31 March 2020

Consumer confidence takes a knock

GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index has decreased by two points to –9 for March as the first signs of covid-19's impact on confidence start to be seen.

News31 March 2020

Shoppers make 79m extra grocery trips

Jane Bainbridge

Britons made more than 79m extra grocery shopping trips in the past four weeks, with total till sales at supermarkets rising  to 20.5%, according to Nielsen figures.

Feature30 March 2020

The choice of subscription

Jane Bainbridge

Do we keep paying for things that we no longer use or want because they fit with some idea we have about our own identity? Jane Bainbridge reports on research exploring the psychology of subscriptions

News30 March 2020

Government combats Covid-19 misinformation

Jane Bainbridge

The government has established specialist units to crack down on the spread of false coronavirus information online.

News30 March 2020

Empower launches faster localisation service

Insight localisation agency, Empower, has released a rapid-response translation and localisation service to ease time-pressures for researchers conducting global Covid-19-related research.

News30 March 2020

Cognizant acquires Lev

Digital, tech and consulting firm, Cognizant, has agreed to buy digital marketing consultancy, Lev, for an undisclosed amount.

News30 March 2020

Survation appoints new directors

Polling and market research agency, Survation, has hired Madhur Mehra as director of research and Carl Shoben as director of strategic communications.

News27 March 2020

Covid-19: Keeping track of attitudes and behaviour

Further Various research trackers and studies have been launched over the past few weeks as research organisations seek to understand consumer attitudes and behaviour during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Opinion27 March 2020

Listen for the conference call

Rory Sutherland

Rory Sutherland shares his preferred options for video conferencing and connecting remotely.

News27 March 2020

UK aid and Unilever in £100m hand washing campaign

Jane Bainbridge

The UK government has joined forces with Unilever for a £100m global campaign to boost hand washing and help tackle the spread of coronavirus.

News27 March 2020

Kantar's MacGregor made MD of Bakamo Public

Social listening consultancy, Bakamo, has appointed former Kantar director, James MacGregor as managing director of Bakamo Public. 

News27 March 2020

Accent wins Ofwat contract

Full service market research agency, Accent, has been awarded a three year contract by water regulator, Ofwat, for customer satisfaction and experience research.

News27 March 2020

Deloitte buys Bistech

Professional services firm Deloitte has acquired data analytics and financial performance management business, Bistech, for an undisclosed amount.

News27 March 2020

PureSpectrum adds Larimer as VP

Research automation platform, PureSpectrum, has appointed ​Arianne Larimer as vice-president, client development.

News26 March 2020

Insights Association appeals to US government

Jane Bainbridge

Melanie Courtright, CEO of the market research trade association, Insights Association ( IA), has written to the government calling on Congress and the White House to support the industry.

News26 March 2020

Engine Creative hires CSO from Ogilvy

Engine Creative, the creative specialist arm of Engine, has appointed Ogilvy’s head of strategy Gen Kobayashi as its chief strategy officer.

News26 March 2020

Comscore reports in-home data use surge

Cross-platform media measurement company Comscore has released figures showing how in-home data use has risen as millions of people are working from home and schools are shutting amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

News26 March 2020

UK grocery spend up 22% since March 2019

Supermarket grocery sales increased by over 22% in the week ending 14th March, compared to the same period last year, according to Nielsen data.  

News26 March 2020

Richard Morris made IPG Mediabrands UK CEO

Richard Morris, CEO of Initiative UK & president of Initiative EMEA, has been appointed CEO of IPG Mediabrands UK & Ireland taking over from Caroline Foster Kenny who is leaving the company.

Feature25 March 2020

Hive minds

Hadley Coull

Hadley Coull, founder of Headz, writes about the rise of independent researchers, strategists and consultants coalescing under new insight and strategy ‘collectives’.

News25 March 2020

Swing to trusted media brands

British consumers have gravitated toward trusted, traditional media brands and live TV in response to Covid-19, according to a new study from Havas Media Group.

News25 March 2020

Saller retires from Diageo

Diageo’s chief marketing officer, Syl Saller, has announced her retirement after 20 years at the drink’s giant.

News25 March 2020

Obituary: Tony Cowling

Tony Cowling, one of the founders of Taylor Nelson, died on March 14th, 2020 after a short illness.

News25 March 2020

EphMRA releases Covid-19 guidance

EphMRA, the healthcare market research and analytics community organisation, has issued guidelines on healthcare market research during the Covid-19 pandemic.

News25 March 2020

AMSRO writes to Australian government

The Association of Market and Social Research Organisations ( AMSRO) has sent an open letter to the Australian government on the need to prioritise market and social research and insights during Covid-19.

Opinion24 March 2020

The demographics dilemma

Dave Power

CrowdDNA's Dave Power writes about the changing interpretation of demographic data among market researchers.

News24 March 2020

Mobey Forum sets up expert group on data privacy

The industry association for digital financial services, Mobey Forum, has formed an expert group to look at how banks and other financial institutions ( FIs) can balance data privacy, security and innovation.

News24 March 2020

Insights Association in final plea for CCPA clarification

The Insights Association ( IA) has called for greater clarity from the State Attorney General about the California Consumer Privacy Act ( CCPA) rules and a delay to their enforcement.

News24 March 2020

Majority of marketers think training needed to remain competitive

More than 80% of brand marketers believe their organisations need to rapidly train their workforce to remain competitive amid the coronavirus pandemic.

News24 March 2020

MMR acquires Together

Independent research agency MMR Group has bought insights-based digital creative agency Together for an undisclosed amount.

News23 March 2020

MRS urges government to support sector

The Market Research Society's CEO, Jane Frost, has written to Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer, asking for support from the government for the sector and its employees.

News23 March 2020

Comscore launches brand suitability protections

Cross-platform media measurement firm Comscore has launched an epidemic brand safety segment to protect brands from their ads appearing in coronavirus and epidemic-related content.

News23 March 2020

Adjust appoints ad fraud head

Mobile measurement and fraud prevention firm, Adjust, has hired Ville Mikkola as head of the Coalition Against Ad Fraud ( CAAF), the industry alliance to tackle ad fraud.

News23 March 2020

Covid-19 will accelerate digital transformation says Sorrell

Sir Martin Sorrell, executive chairman of S4 Capital, has said the Covid-19 pandemic will mean digital and business transformation will "move at a significantly faster rate".

News23 March 2020

TCPA lawsuit against M/A/R/C Research rejected

Market research company M/A/R/C Research has been found to not have breached the Telephone Consumer Protection Act ( TCPA) by a US District court.

News20 March 2020

Obituary: Gale Metzger

Gale Metzger, beloved father and grandfather, and a titan of media research, formerly of Summit, New Jersey and Manchester, Vermont, died at the age of 83 on 16th March in New Jersey.

News20 March 2020

Local newspapers partner on joint front page

Publishers Archant, Reach, JPI Media, Newsquest and Iliffe have launched a joint front page campaign in a show of support to readers during the Covid-19 outbreak.

News20 March 2020

UserTesting secures $100m in funding and acquires Teston

Insight platform UserTesting has raised $100m in funding led by venture capital and private equity firm Insight Partners.

News20 March 2020

IR35 reforms delayed due to Covid-19

The government has postponed its reforms to the IR35 tax rules for 12 months as part of plans to alleviate pressure on businesses.

News20 March 2020

IAB hires Eng for measurement VP role

The Interactive Advertising Bureau ( IAB) and its sister organisation IAB Tech Lab  has appointed ad industry veteran Angelina Eng as vice-president of measurement and attribution.

News20 March 2020

DIY boost during social distancing

The DIY/home market saw sales jump 4.9% in the week 9th - 15th March, compared with the same period the previous year, as people look to home improvement during Covid-19 social distancing.

News19 March 2020

Zylotech names Cormier as CEO

Customer intelligence platform Zylotech has appointed Ernie Cormier as its chief executive officer and president.

Opinion19 March 2020

New frontiers: The growth of bespoke nudging

Crawford Hollingworth

Personalised and targeted behavioural interventions can have more impact than ‘one-size-fits-all’ nudging.

Opinion19 March 2020

New frontiers: The growth of bespoke nudging

Personalised and targeted behavioural interventions can have more impact than ‘one-size-fits-all’ nudging.

News19 March 2020

PRS In Vivo updates pack testing tools

Shopper and product research company PRS In Vivo has updated its packaging design screening and validating services.

News19 March 2020

US census field operations paused over coronavirus concerns

The US Census Bureau has suspended its census field operations for two weeks because of the Covid-19 outbreak.

News19 March 2020

VideoAmp buys Conversion Logic

Video advertising data platform, VideoAmp, has acquired cross-channel attribution firm, Conversion Logic, for an undisclosed amount.

News19 March 2020

Marron promoted at Red C

Red C Research & Marketing has announced that Aoife Marron has been promoted to a director at the market research and polling company.

Feature18 March 2020

Jeni Tennison in seven

In the latest of our In Seven series, we speak to Jeni Tennison, chief executive of the Open Data Institute, about open data, regulation and data misconceptions.

News18 March 2020

S4 Capital posts 2019 revenue, reports no Covid-19 impact yet

Digital agency S4 Capital’s revenue reached £215.1m in 2019, an increase of 41% like-for-like.

News18 March 2020

White House and researchers launch Covid-19 data hub

Researchers from organisations including the Allen Institute for AI, Microsoft, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and the US government have partnered to launch an open research resource on Covid-19.

News18 March 2020

MRS recommends pausing face-to-face research as industry responds to Covid-19

The Market Research Society has recommended that face-to-face research is not conducted during the outbreak, as agencies adjust their practices.

News18 March 2020

Downham and Nelson named AMSR founder patrons

The Archive of Market and Social Research ( AMSR) has appointed John Downham and Liz Nelson as founder patrons.

News18 March 2020

Voxpopme names Lonnie Mayne chairman

Video insights company Voxpopme has appointed Lonnie Mayne as chairman of the company’s board.

News17 March 2020

Online political ads should show who paid for them, says Law Commission

The Law Commission has called for digital political adverts to be ‘imprinted’ to show who has paid for the ad.

News17 March 2020

AudienceProject named measurement partner for Media Metrics Finland

User statistics measurement provider Media Metrics Finland has partnered with Danish market research company AudienceProject to measure page views and demographics on websites and apps.

News17 March 2020

Open Data Institute calls for Covid-19 data transparency

Governments around the world should "act now" to publish the data behind their decision-making on the Covid-19 pandemic, the chief executive of the Open Data Institute has said.

News17 March 2020

Blueprint Partnership hires Chamberlain

Healthcare market research agency Blueprint Partnership has appointed Carolyn Chamberlain as commercial director.

News17 March 2020

Appinio makes two new hires

Global market research platform Appinio has appointed Svea Kessler and Lukas Winterschladen to its research consulting and business development teams.

News16 March 2020

MRBA offers support to those affected by Covid-19

The Market Research Benevolent Association ( MRBA) has issued a reminder to the industry of the aid it can offer during the Covid-19 pandemic and urged research organisations to make staff aware.

Feature16 March 2020

Sweet solutions

Katie McQuater

Christina Habib is part of a senior insights organisation within Unilever looking to build better customer understanding into innovation. She believes businesses need to innovate differently, experiment more – and research agencies should be partners. 

News16 March 2020

Women in ads – stereotyping falls but so too does feminism

Female stereotypes in advertising are falling with only a quarter ( 28%) of UK women saying they feel pressure from ads to look and act a certain way, compared to 49% in 2017.

News16 March 2020

Wirth named CEO of Kynetec and Kleffmann Group

Agricultural and animal health market research company Kynetec has appointed Daniel Wirth as chief executive, following the merger with agricultural insights firm the Kleffmann Group.

News16 March 2020

Remesh in $25m funding round

Artificial intelligence market research company, Remesh, has announced $25m in series A2 funding led by General Catalyst, along with LionBird, North Coast Ventures and several new external investors.

News13 March 2020

Elections postponed for a year due to Covid-19

Katie McQuater

The local and mayoral elections planned for 7th May, including the London mayoral election, will be postponed until May 2021 because of the Covid-19 outbreak.

News13 March 2020

Route updates OOH digital currency

Route, the audience research body for out-of-home ( OOH) advertising, has launched a new measurement system that includes ‘spot-level’ audience ratings.

News13 March 2020

Why ethics matter more than rules in the IoT age

Market researchers must look at their use of data through an ethical lens as well as a legal one, or risk losing consumers’ trust in an age of ultra-connectiveness. 

News13 March 2020

Electoral Commission recommends delaying May polls

The government should postpone the May local elections until autumn because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Electoral Commission has recommended.

News13 March 2020

Merkle RMG makes Sayre CEO

Technology and data marketing agency, Merkle, has appointed Bill Sayre as CEO of Merkle Response Management Group ( RMG).

News13 March 2020

Realeyes expands across US and APAC

Computer vision and emotion AI company, Realeyes, has hired key new executives across global markets including North America and APAC as part of its global expansion.

News13 March 2020

Barb integrates with IPA TouchPoints

Television audience measurement currency, Barb, has launched an integration with IPA TouchPoints so that all of its daily audience data can be analysed by IPA TouchPoints classifications.

Opinion12 March 2020

What can leaders do to make working from home, work

As the nation gets ready for widespread homeworking, Jeremy Hollow shares his advice for how market researchers should adapt to this mode of working.

News12 March 2020

Kantar’s Baldini joins InCrowd

Life sciences market research agency InCrowd has appointed Kantar's Joseph Baldini as its chief technology officer.

News12 March 2020

Trax buys Survey.com

Retail analytics firm, Trax, has acquired consumer packaged goods ( CPG) sales and merchandising services firm, Survey.com, for an undisclosed amount.

News12 March 2020

Bernardine Evaristo: ‘I write the stories I feel need to be out there’

Katie McQuater

It's important for authors to write beyond their own perspectives and demographics, Booker Prize winner Bernardine Evaristo has said.

News12 March 2020

Kantar buys Mavens of London

Kantar has acquired digital marketing and analytics consultancy Mavens of London as it looks to expand its digital consultancy services.

News12 March 2020

The future is a foreign country

Jane Bainbridge

Ipsos Mori’s CEO, Ben Page, shared a whistle-stop tour of consumer trends with one eye to the future, on the second day of Impact 2020.

News11 March 2020

What we know (and don't) about the future of Europe

Catherine Turner

Coronavirus may prove to be a “political gift” to the government by papering over Brexit's “slow puncture”.

News11 March 2020

Intelligence Capital 2020: Building competitive advantage through research

Insight teams must move perceptions of being a company’s intelligence “gate-keepers” to being the enablers of democratised data across all areas of a business. 

News11 March 2020

How clients are taking on the data challenge

Jane Bainbridge

Carlsberg and BT insight leaders shared how business priorities are changing and data is being managed and shared within organisations at Impact 2020 today.

News11 March 2020

Is identity politics eroding social cohesion?

Qualitative research from Jigsaw has explored how the psychological aspects of identity politics – the need to belong, the need for meaning and the need for dignity/respect – manifest in people’s lives.

News11 March 2020

Extinction Rebellion's Paddy Loughman on the promise in the peril

Catherine Turner

The market research industry should position itself at the vanguard of climate change action, according to Extinction Rebellion’s Paddy Loughman.

News11 March 2020

Caroline Criado-Perez: 'There is an urgent need for sex-disaggregated data'

Katie McQuater

Diversity is essential for research, as biased data has serious implications for how resources are allocated and products and services are designed, said Caroline Criado-Perez at the Impact 2020 conference.

News11 March 2020

Towards inclusive market research

Jane Bainbridge

Our industry is too white, middle-aged and straight, said Ali Camps, deputy chairman of Quadrangle, as she opened the panel discussion on inclusion at the MRS Impact 2020 conference yesterday.

News10 March 2020

The new privacy rules: Why it’s time to talk ethics in an AI age

It is time to rethink privacy for the age of artificial intelligence – and that conversation requires everyone to be involved, according to AI expert Ivana Bartoletti. 

News10 March 2020

Fostering wellbeing at work: 'You don’t leave your baggage at the door'

Changing expectations of the workforce will force organisations to take action on wellbeing and mental health, but more data is needed to truly effect change, according to a panel discussion with PwC, Mind, Respondi and Opinium Research.

News10 March 2020

Doubt my data: fake news and bogus data is giving research a bad name

Society’s future rests on the ability to sort the factual wheat from a fake news chaff with bogus data giving market research a bad name, according to Tom Ewing, founder of consultancy Wordbeast, speaking at Impact 2020.

News10 March 2020

How to make a good infographic

Good data visualisation must be based on a good story and the types of questions people ask themselves, according to Rob Orchard, editor and co-founder of slow journalism magazine Delayed Gratification, who shared tips for creating infographics at the Impact 2020 conference. 

News10 March 2020

Why neither the CMO nor the CDO should seek to own the customer

Catherine Turner

It is arrogant and dangerous of marketers, researchers or anyone else in the C-suite to believe they “own” the customer, according to panellists at Impact 2020.

News10 March 2020

Jamie Bartlett: Better systems needed to 're-establish ground truths'

Katie McQuater

Technology has complicated, confusing implications for the future, so we need to create new systems fit for an online world, according to Jamie Bartlett, former director of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media at Demos.

News10 March 2020

Unilever reveals the 'secret sauce' driving innovation and growth

Catherine Turner

Unilever is making savings of more than €30m each year by putting real-time consumer insight at the centre of decision-making.

News9 March 2020

Unlimited hires Gibbons to lead sports unit

Marketing services company Unlimited Group has appointed Lee Gibbons as managing director of its Sport Unlimited division.

News9 March 2020

Australian data regulator takes legal action against Facebook

The Australian Information Commissioner has launched federal court action against Facebook over privacy breaches linked to the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

Feature9 March 2020

Gauging the temperature

Katie McQuater

Research has found a high level of misunderstanding of the climate crisis and the environment in the UK. Could this be why heightened climate awareness isn’t translating to widespread behaviour change?

News9 March 2020

Dynata and CMNTY partner on community insights

Data and insights platform, Dynata, and online community platform business, CMNTY, have joined forces to help brands improve audience engagement with community-based consumer insights.

News9 March 2020

LiveRamp releases Safe Haven

Data accessibility business LiveRamp has released Safe Haven, its new platform for brands and their partners to securely share data.

Feature6 March 2020

IWD and the CEO Pledge

With International Women’s Day ( IWD) on 8th March, two more industry leaders have signed up to the Market Research Society’s CEO Pledge, taking the total signed up to 25 organisations committed to diversity and opportunity for all in the workplace.

News6 March 2020

Comscore launches congressional district ratings

Cross-platform media measurement firm, Comscore, has introduced Congressional District Ratings to give insights on local television audiences precisely matched to US congressional district boundaries.

News6 March 2020

ABC made auditor for IAB Gold Standard

IAB UK has appointed ABC to audit its current Gold Standard certification process to ensure it is robust and transparent.  

Advertisement feature6 March 2020

How can brands save our planet and unlock growth?

Hall & Partners is launching SUSTAIN, a global campaign that explores how brands can help build a sustainable future.

News6 March 2020

VoxCo appoints Levitt for CMO role

Survey software business Voxco has hired Jonathan Levitt as chief marketing officer and Abhey Rana as vice-president of growth marketing.

News6 March 2020

Cint hires chief technology officer

SWEDEN – Insights tech business, Cint, has appointed Helene Stafferöd-Westerlund as chief technology officer.

News5 March 2020

New board members at MRS

The Market Research Society ( MRS) has announced that five new main board members have been elected.

News5 March 2020

Kantar launches Entertainment On Demand service

Kantar has established its Entertainment on Demand panel to help the music industry better understand customers.

News5 March 2020

Savanta adds to US team

Next 15-owned Savanta has appointed Sadia Corey as a director on its Americas commercial team.

News5 March 2020

WPP acquires data science firm Sandtable

WPP-owned GroupM has bought data science company, Sandtable, for an undisclosed amount.

News5 March 2020

Delineate appoints product director

Insights and data firm delineate has hired James Stewart as product director.

News5 March 2020

Cathay Pacific fined by ICO for data breach

Jane Bainbridge

The Information Commissioner’s Office ( ICO) has fined Cathay Pacific Airways £500,000 for failing to protect customers’ personal data.

Opinion4 March 2020

What's top of your research agenda for 2020?

Jane Frost, CEO of MRS issues a call to arms for the research sector ahead of next week's Impact 2020 annual conference.

Feature4 March 2020

As you like it

Claire Powell

Responses to a social media experiment have highlighted differing attitudes to validation in several countries, analysis from Join the Dots / InSites Consulting has found

Feature4 March 2020

As you like it

Lily Charnock

Responses to a social media experiment have highlighted differing attitudes to validation in several countries, analysis from Join the Dots / InSites Consulting has found

News4 March 2020

Loyalty programmes less popular with Gen Z

While more than three quarters ( 76%) of Brits are current members of a loyalty programme, their appeal seems to be waning among 18- to 24-year olds, according to new research.

News4 March 2020

Whitmore to leave Route

James Whitmore, managing director of Route, the audience research body for out-of-home ( OOH) advertising, is stepping down for health reasons after 14 years in the role.

News4 March 2020

mParticle secures $45m investment

Customer data platform mParticle has raised $45m in Series D funding led by Arrowroot Capital.

News4 March 2020

OpinionWay opens in Poland

Marketing and opinion research company, OpinionWay, has established a new office in Poland, the latest in its international expansion. 

News4 March 2020

Publicis Sapient buys Third Horizon

Digital transformation business, Publicis Sapient, has acquired Australia-based management consultancy firm, Third Horizon, for an undisclosed amount.

News4 March 2020

Maru Group updates IAT tool

Global tech-based market research and customer insights company, Maru, has launched the next phase of its Implicit Association Testing ( IAT) tool.

News3 March 2020

Facebook sues OneAudience over data use

Social media network, Facebook, has filed a federal lawsuit in California against New Jersey-based data and analytics firm OneAudience.

News3 March 2020

Whalar appoints Spencer as partnerships SVP

Influencer marketing and content creation solution, Whalar, has hired Karyn Spencer for the newly created role of senior vice-president, partnerships.

News3 March 2020

Merkle launches second Scotland office

Dentsu Aegis-owned data and technology marketing agency Merkle has opened an office in Aberdeen, after launching an Edinburgh hub last year.

News3 March 2020

Schlesinger Group buys Market Cube

Data collection and research services firm Schlesinger Group has acquired online sample and survey research company Market Cube.

News2 March 2020

Opinium opens New York office

Research agency Opinium has opened its US office in New York’s Madison Avenue and appointed Giulia Prati as vice-president of research US.

Opinion2 March 2020

The impact of IR35

From April, the government's IR35 legislation will bring changes to how off-payroll freelancers are taxed. 

News2 March 2020

Engelgau made Acxiom CEO

Interpublic Group has appointed Chad Engelgau as chief executive officer of the data, technology and marketing services company, Acxiom, which it acquired in 2018.

News2 March 2020

UK ad industry launches export group

A new UK advertising industry partnership with the government has been established – The UK Advertising Export Group ( UKAEG) – to boost the profile and lead generation opportunities for our creative industry in key international territories.

News2 March 2020

USA Today, Democracy Fund and UCLA launch American voters study

Newspaper USA Today has partnered with the Democracy Fund and UCLA on a public opinion research project ahead of the US election.

News2 March 2020

Nielsen grows revenue in 2019

Nielsen’s reported revenue decreased 0.3% in 2019, but rose 1.7% on a constant currency basis, exceeding the company’s expectations for its full-year results.

News2 March 2020

Engine Insights launches small business omnibus

Research and analytics division of Engine, Engine Insights, has established the Caravan Small Business Omnibus Survey, to help businesses gain intelligence on the small business community.

News2 March 2020

Fiftyfive5’s King named head of pharma

Marketing and insights agency Fiftyfive5 has appointed partner Alan King as head of pharma.