NEW YORK- Omnicom Group today announced that it has completed its acquisition of Cline, Davis & Mann (CDM), the New York-based healthcare agency. The deal makes Omnicom the world's leading health advertising services organization. In 1996, CDM reported $170 million in billings; its success reflects the expansion of the healthcare field and affirms the growth of health agencies overall. "Omnicom's established global capabilities, combined with CDMs expertise in all aspects of Rx, direct-to-consumer (DTC) and over-the-counter (OTC) marketing, will allow CDM to offer greater depth and scope of service to our clients," said Morgan Cline, CEO of CDM. "Our clients have enjoyed rapid growth of their products through partnership with CDM, and we anticipate even more success with the worldwide resources of Omnicom," he concluded. CDM's reporting structure will differ from that of other healthcare agencies within the Omnicom Group, in that CDM will maintain its current management structure and report directly to Omnicom president and CEO, John Wren. CDM is responsible for campaigns for major pharmaceutical and consumer products. Current clients include Pfizer, Parke-Davis, Forest Laboratories, Genetics Institute, Centeon and Neuromedical Systems, Inc. The agency recently completed the launch campaign for Lipitor, a breakthrough new cholesterol-lowering agent developed by Parke-Davis and jointly marketed with Pfizer. CDM has also carved out an important niche as a DTC/OTC specialist, promoting a wide range of products directly to consumers. Among the agency's DTC brands are Diflucan, Cardura and Papnet testing; OTC products include Unisom, Plax, Ben Gay, Cortizone10 and Bain de Soleil. In 1996, media spending in support of CDM's DTC/OTC efforts exceeded spending on their professional brands (the agency ranks within the top three healthcare agencies in the buying of professional media). Cline, Davis & Mann has a long tradition of dedicating its senior management to its clients core businesses, said Wren. The agency is also known for its groundbreaking creative work and aggressive pursuit of new business. Their skills, coupled with the resources and support of the Omnicom Group, help position us as not only the leader in terms of revenue, but as the preeminent force in creativity and responsiveness to the growing and changing healthcare market, he concluded. Founded in 1984, Cline, Davis & Mann is a full-service healthcare advertising agency that provides a wide range of marketing, educational, media and creative services directed at healthcare professionals, providers and consumers. With nearly 170 employees, CDM was rated 15 among U.S. healthcare agencies in 1996.