In an interesting twist to the story, the deal involved no cash payments which would have been against the law, but Ranbaxy was being allowed to sell its generic in a number of international markets. They include Canada, so smart American buyers can avoid the monopolist's prices by buying there and having the med mailed to them individually in the US.
Lipitor already faced competition from a generic form of Zocor, but Pfizer has apparently been pretty successful in keeping its established customers.
