The maker of Nurofen, Reckitt Benckiser, has been fined $1.7 million for its ‘targeted’ pain-relief products.

The Federal Court last year ruled that Nurofen's “specific pain range” misled consumers, because they were marketed as being able to target specific areas of pain.

But all of the products contained the same active ingredient and did the same thing, the court found.

Interestingly, the makers of Nurofen were forced to argue against their own marketing.

During the hearings, lawyers for Reckitt Benckiser argued that any “rational” consumers would not think that the pain-specific products were any more effective than regular ones.

But the marketing and labelling of the products promised that they could relieve back pain, period pain, tension headache and migraines.

It is not possible to target pain relief in that way.

The products all rely on the exact same active ingredient: ibuprofen lysine 342mg.

Lawyers for the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) wanted the Court to impose a fine of $6 million.

Barrister for the ACCC, Katrina Banks-Smith SC, said Reckitt Benckiser the misleading marketing brought “substantial profits” for the maker.

“There needs to be some serious taking away of profit,” she said.

Ms Banks-Smith SC said the pain-specific products were sold at almost double the price of Nurofen's standard range for around five years.

The ACCC also argued that Nurofen's broad range of products disadvantaged its competitors by making less shelf space available for them.

The company was given three months to withdraw the products from shelves in December last year.

In the interim, the company will place stickers on the products to correct the misleading claims.

Lawyers for the ACCC say some of those stickers have been obscured in some supermarkets.