Sepracor will spend an estimated $60 million to advertise its new insomnia drug Lunesta directly to consumers, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The drug was approved by the FDA Wednesday.
Handling the DTC account for Lunesta is McCann-Erickson, with professional work done by Torre Lazur McCann Healthcare.
Lunesta was formerly known as Estorra. Its name was changed to avoid confusion with another drug on the market, a company official said. 
Lunesta will enter the $2 billion market for sleep aids, which is led by Sanofi-Aventis’ Ambien. Ambien spent $65 million on U.S. media in 2002, according to Nielsen-Monitor Plus.
Analysts estimate Lunesta could start out with annual sales of $400 million, rising to $750 million or more.