The threat of generic competition against Schering-Plough's similar prescription pill, Clarinex, took care of that.
And existing drugs, big sellers like Merck's Fosamax and Pfizer's Lipitor, are facing generic competition.
With both companies facing generic competition on major drugs, neither can afford to lose.
Roche, for its part, is facing generic competition on Accutane, one of its best-selling acne drugs.
These laws are expected to protect Provigil from generic competition until sometime in 2006.
Prozac, once its bestseller, probably will be hobbled by generic competition starting in the fall.
If they lose, their blockbuster will vanish in the face of cheap generic competition.
Generic competition on cancer treatment Taxol and anti-anxiety drug BuSpar is already dragging on sales.
Generic competition for its allergy drug Claritin is likely to push 2003 earnings down 37% from 2001.
Patent losses and the increased threat from generic competition are the two biggest factors impacting future performance.
And by filing the Citizen Petition last month, Reckitt will likely delay generic competition for several months more.
FORBES: Reckitt's Suboxone Strategy Is Really About Patients Or Profits?
Provigil could conceivably face cheap generic competition within a few years if a key patent doesn't hold up.
Already, Pfizer's sales are flat because of generic competition for products like antibiotic Zithromax and nerve-pain drug Neurontin.
The company is already facing U.S. generic competition for Augmentin, one of the most effective antibiotics currently sold.
Taxol, once hailed as a cancer wonder drug, will soon face generic competition.
Over the next two years, generic competition will hit many of the drugs Eli Lilly relies on for profits.
Many hope Xigris sales could replace those lost as Prozac faces generic competition.
Though King was mainly interested in the beta-blocker Corzide, it was forced to take another beta-blocker, Corgard, which faces generic competition.
Generic competition to Topamax and Risperdal cut into sales, but strong growth from inflammatory disease treatment Remicade helped moderate the damage.
Last year, big biotech firepower rose 61 percent relative to 2006, thanks to premium product pricing and a lack of generic competition.
FORBES: What Firepower? Why Big Drugmakers Can't Do Big Deals
When patents on blockbusters like Lipitor run out, generic competition ensures that prices collapse quickly sometimes to a tenth of their former levels.
Mevacor already faces generic competition, and Pravachol will face generics in 2006.
Bernstein analysts predict that by 2015 generic competition for Lipitor and other big sellers will chop 25% out of Pfizer's present revenue stream.
But Bristol-Myers doesn't have a wellspring of new drugs coming right away, and two of its top drugs could soon face generic competition.
But Aredia will soon face generic competition, a circumstance that over a few years can rob 80% or more of a pharmaceutical's value.
"Companies rely on branded drugs and anything that is seen to delay the generic competition is good for a branded maufactoring company, " he explained.
Poor sales of key drugs and worse than expected generic competition will mean that revenue will dip, instead of growing in the single digits.
Originally, the patent was scheduled to expire in 2015, but now the drug may face generic competition in the U.S. as early as in 2013.
FORBES: Looking At Bristol-Myers Squibb's Major Patent Expiries That Will Drag On Growth
Consumers, of course, benefit from generic competition by paying lower prices.
FORBES: Over-The-Counter Remedies That Would Reduce Health Care Costs
The case also is unusual because Zoloft has had cheap generic competition since 2006, so it's no longer advertised, and little brand-name Zoloft is sold.
应用推荐