If Novartis’ move to consolidate its hold on Alcon is successful, the addition of the world’s largest maker of eye preparations will give the Swiss pharma giant a considerable hold on the global eye care market. According to EvaluatePharma’s Peer Group Analyzer, the merger will give the Swiss pharma giant a substantial 34% share of this sector by 2014, leaving the other players in its wake (see tables).

As the analysis below reveals the growth predicted for this area of the market, largely driven by an ageing population, is not as pronounced as areas such as oncology or diabetes. However, with 4% a year sales growth forecast until 2014, the field is certainly proving tempting to a handful of companies who look set to maintain their dominance of this field, and others such as Sanofi-Aventis, which with its recent acquisition of Fovea clearly sees opportunities in this sector.