Meanwhile, sales of Crestor (a competitor anti-cholesterol drug) increased only somewhat during the same period (see chart below; Source: http://www.drugs.com/stats/crestor).
I conclude that most of the loss of Lipitor sales was due to direct competition from generic versions of Lipitor now currently available, which is further proof that Pfizer's "innovative" attempts to stem the generic Lipitor tide has failed (see also "Pfizer Throws In the Lipitor Marketing Towel").
Failed? 70% erosion after 1 year sounds like a success to me, but maybe I am a "glass half full" type of person.
ReplyDeleteIt's not a matter of glass half full or half empty; it's a matter of the goal that Pfizer set. Considering that Pfizer's goal was on maintaining a 40% share of the combined market for Lipitor and its generic equivalents for at least 6 months after generic brands are launched, yes, I think it's plan failed. See http://bit.ly/PzmZxD
DeleteWell that does sound like a lofty goal.
DeleteInterestingly, the IMS data you reference give Lipitor a 47% share of the atorvastatin market in Q1 and 42% in Q2, if you are measuring by value.