1. British drugmaker Mallinckrodt agreed to acquire Maryland-based Sucampo Pharmaceuticals for $1.2 billion, expanding its rare disease pipeline and adding constipation drug Amitiza to its portfolio. (Bloomberg)
2. Amazon plans to increase its digital advertising offerings in 2018, especially on its search and video products, as the e-retailer looks to take on pure-play advertisers Google and Facebook. It is also reportedly working with third-party tech companies to sell partnered TV and mobile ads. (CNBC)
3. The World Health Organization classified gaming disorder as a mental health condition as part of the beta draft of the forthcoming 11th update of International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). Being in the ICD-11 would mean that HCPs and insurers can use it as a diagnosis. (Forbes)
4. Merck KGaA subsidiary Merck Serono is partnering with Chinese drugmaker WuXi AppTec to launch pharma and biotech startup incubator Explore Bio in Israel in early 2018. (CTech)
5. More than 50 million Americans — 19.6% of the population — will use a wearable device at least once a month in 2018, a new report forecasted. That rate is far lower than earlier projections, however, and is set to decrease to less than 10% in 2019. (Fast Company)
