Click to play videoNew Delhi: Pharma major Ranbaxy has settled its dispute with drug giant Pfizer over the cholestrol-lowering drug, Lipitor.
The move will give Ranbaxy access to over $1 billion in sales revenue. Both companies have agreed to withdraw litigations against each other in the 12-year-long patent dispute.
Ranbaxy and Pfizer have also agreed to settle patent disputes over two other Pfizer drugs, Caduet and Quinapril.
Ranbaxy will benefit from a 180-day exclusivity clause on Lipitor from November 2011 in US.
Pfizer's shares rose 3.8 percent to $18.40 in premarket trading. Ranbaxy closed up 2.9 percent at a three-year high of 598.20 rupees in Mumbai on speculation the company would reach a Lipitor settlement with Pfizer. Japan's Daiichi Sankyo last week said it would pay up to $4.6 billion for control of Ranbaxy.
Reuters adds: Asked if the delay could spark a backlash among patients and insurers who favor cheaper generics, David Reid, Pfizer's acting general counsel, said: "We're pleased with this settlement and we actually think it is pro-patient, pro-competitive and pro-intellectual property."
"It was best to bring certainty for both organizations," Ranbaxy Chief Executive Malvinder Singh said in an interview at Ranbaxy's London office. "The biggest part for us is in the United States where we will launch with certainty and without any risk."
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