You are getting sleepy…

Just dropping a note to check out the new Ambien CR commercials that are playing on American television (not sure if they’re playing in other countries). You can find the commercials by clicking on the link entitled “Watch the Clips” on this webpage.

For those who are not aware, Ambien (now sold generically as zolpidem tartrate) is a pharmaceutical manufactured by Sanofi-Aventis that is used to treat bouts of insomnia. The controlled release (or “CR”) formulation is a combination of two drugs where one puts you to sleep immediately and the second signals your body to stay asleep.

Ambien’s generic version was recently approved by the FDA for sale in the United States. In many of these cases (as patent life expires) pharmaceutical companies will try to “improve” their formulation to extend the life of a patent (by filing another application). In this particular case, Sanofi was awarded a US patent on February 4, 2003 for a “controlled-release dosage forms comprising zolpidem or a salt thereof” (US patent #6,514,531). I’m guessing that Ambien CR is Sanofi’s attempt to prolong the life of their “Ambien” drug.

At any rate, Ambien CR’s new add campaign is being hailed as a revolutionary marketing strategy, predominantly because the commercials are simple, entertaining and urge you to want to check out their website without actually mentioning the drug they’re marketing. Truly brilliant.

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