(Source: Business Wire)IMS Health (NYSE: RX) today announced the launch of Ask IMSTM, a cost-effective, Web-based service that provides strategic market intelligence to help drive the growth and success of early-stage biopharmaceutical companies. Drawn from IMS's comprehensive pharmaceutical market information, Ask IMS offers timely decision-making support for understanding critical market opportunities and issues, as well as for planning and executing successful commercialization strategies.

The new service delivers both top-line and in-depth insights about the healthcare marketplace at the country level, equipping early-stage companies with timely and accurate information for their business development decisions and funding efforts. Clients can quickly leverage IMS's syndicated market audits for countries worldwide, focusing on critical areas such as sales and prescribing trends, primary disease treatments and promotion activities in specific markets. Answers to client queries are delivered in pre-formatted, presentation-ready reports that can be customized for a variety of uses.

"With more than 1,500 biopharmaceutical drugs in active development by early-stage firms, companies are seeking evidence-based insights to develop and integrate commercial thinking early on and throughout the development process," said Jim Mahon, general manager, Product and Portfolio Management, IMS. "Ask IMS offers these innovators access to our gold-standard business intelligence, gleaned from more than five decades of supporting the pharmaceutical industry -- giving them an efficient, cost-effective way to transform their scientific vision into market reality."

Currently available in the U.S. through IMS's customer portal, Ask IMS enables development-stage companies to reduce the time and expense associated with assessing vital market information as part of their ongoing R&D and funding activities.

About IMS

Operating in more than 100 countries, IMS Health is the world's leading provider of market intelligence to the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. With $2.3 billion in 2008 revenue and more than 50 years of industry experience, IMS offers leading-edge market intelligence products and services that are integral to clients' day-to-day operations, includingproduct and portfoliomanagement capabilities;commercial effectiveness innovations; managed care and consumer health offerings; and consulting and services solutions that improve productivity and the delivery of quality healthcare worldwide. Additional information is available at http://www.imshealth.com.

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