BREITSTEIN: Has anybody had a different experience with tablet PCs?

ROSENTHAL: There's been a lot of hype around tablet PCs and how they are going to transform the sales force. But we've been trying to measure exactly what it is that they do — what do they transform? Most physicians have participated in a detail that included a tablet PC. And we know with the exception of oncology, most specialists don't prefer it. In fact, they much prefer to view patient assessment and education materials, or clinical reprints, or a visual aids, in a call.

In just trying to dig into this a little more, we think that that's because a tablet PC doesn't make a rep any more effective anymore than a telephone makes you a better communicator. It's still only a tool.

STICKLER: Tablet PCs look like they can have other benefits though. In particular, we think it can really have an impact in terms of dollars and cents as we look into the future and the concept of rapid delivery of new promotional materials. For instance, think about product launches. The sales force can simply download the materials, which can shave off a number of days between the customary paper launch and electronic launch.

The other thing is in the hospital selling environment: It's not uncommon for providers to ask reps off-label questions. The standard approach would be for the rep to give the doctor a business reply card, and the physician would sign it and fax it in. With tablet technology, we can capture a signature, confirm that the physician is, in fact, asking an off-label question, and then send them an answer to that question right then and there. It's a nice value-add.

SNOW: One thing to watch for here is FDA's capacity to review these materials. It is a real challenge, and we certainly hope FDA can move forward on the digital materials, because that's a real area of opportunity for the industry at large.

BREITSTEIN: How do companies view electronic detailing efforts as compared with the more traditional approach to sales?

LAMBERT: One-to-one is still going to give you the greatest impact and the highest return.

ROSENTHAL: The number of rep-guided e-details has been consistent over the last couple of years. But we are picking up a trend toward increased acceptance by physicians for self-directed e-details. The acceptance rate by physicians is marginally higher than it is for dinner programs the reps invite them to.

If that trend continues, companies will see that channel as worthy of investment. The effectiveness of them, I can't speak to yet.

JENNINGS: It's given small pharma companies — those that simply can't afford to put representatives in practices — a chance to act big. They are building platforms where doctors can have an e-detail with a rep, and then go online and order samples, or sign up for a net conference.

HULL: I'm somewhat of a cynic until I see it. We can't get too far ahead of ourselves. After all, the organization first has to have the internal fortitude to have the systems in place that can use this information for the benefit of sales and marketing. If you don't have those underlying operating systems that support all of the new information, what's the point?

BREITSTEIN: Many Big Pharma companies are working under corporate integrity agreements. Is there a natural intersection where technology can monitor compliance?

JENNINGS: We have to find ways to prove that we are providing a scientific or a clinical message to doctors that will benefit their patient population and increase the wellness of our communities. As the technology changes, we're going to have sources, like with tablet PCs, to prove that we are doing that, even down to the page or the chart being presented in the doctor's office.