That leads to another potential upside for Merck: It could switch patients from Zocor to a Zocor-Zetia combination pill before Zocor loses patent protection in 2006.
They spend brief periods of time innovating, and then milk a technology, brand, patent, or some combination therein for as long as they can get away with it (or in Moto's case, way longer).
Merck and Schering are planning to eventually introduce a combination pill of Zocor and Zetia, which some analysts hope will blunt the force of the Zocor patent expiration.