As it begins to market its own version of the popular drug Ritalin, Alza Corp. is likely to encounter physicians with their own kind of attention-deficit disorder. Alza hopes to distinguish Concerta, a once-daily formulation of methylphenidate now at the FDA awaiting marketing approval, by stressing its compliance advantage. Students required to take a mid-day dose of the drug often resist visits to the school nurse, and parents tire of fighting with their children about taking other versions of the medication three times a day.
Still, Concertawill be a late entrant in a $1 billion market dominated by other versions of methylphenidate manufactured by Novartis...