Context Media adds new rheumatoid network

November 11, 2010 by Dave Haynes

When I am asked to cite examples of DOOH networks that are thriving and doing things right I usually reference Chicago-based ContextMedia and its diabetes-focused network. The network is focused only on clinics that treat patients who have or may have diabetes, and it does very well by limiting much of its ad sales focus to the big drug manufacturers that have diabetes drugs.

The resulting ad rates they get are goofy high – the stuff that most DOOH sales VPs idly dream about.

Now CEO Rishi Shah has launched a new condition-specific waiting room TV network called the Rheumatoid Health Network (RHN),which is designed to inform and educate people with rheumatoid conditions while they wait for appointments in the medical office of rheumatologists.

Following in the footsteps of ContextMedia’s highly successful Diabetes Health Network, which already reaches patients in the offices of 1 in 4 diabetes specialists, the Rheumatoid Health Network will engage patients at precisely the right time, when they are thinking about their healthcare, and the right place, in their trusted physician’s office.

“The launch of the RHN is a meaningful step towards our mission of providing patient education resources to every chronic disease specialist and engineering better patient-physician dialogue,” said Rishi Shah, CEO of ContextMedia. “We’re fortunate to have the support of sponsors and many stakeholders from launch and look forward to rapidly penetrating the rheumatology market.”

The RHN features an engaging 90-minute monthly playlist with educational videos on rheumatoid diseases, personal stories from patients, nutrition and fitness from the most trusted sources of health-related news and information. The playlist also includes commercial messages for relevant products and services from healthcare companies.

In a survey of ContextMedia’s networks, 79% of the patients said that they learned new information by watching the waiting-room TV that will help them live a healthier life.

ContextMedia’s networks employ state-of-the-art digital signage technology that enables physicians to customize the system according to their practice and patient demographic. The waiting-room TV networks, including a 32’’ flat-panel display and award-winning content, is a complimentary service for physicians.

In its pilot stage of 200 screens, the RHN is supported with a charter sponsorship by a newly launched rheumatoid arthritis brand from a leading global healthcare company. The network is expected to be in over 600 rheumatologists’ waiting rooms by the end of 2011.

Smart. They open up a new well-defined vertical but probably call on the same small number of possible pharma advertisers. A new network with limited new overhead or effort.

Shah and his team do really good work and operate almost entirely off the DOOH industry radar screen. But Context is likely one of the most successful companies in the space.