Drug Companies Resolve Patent Dispute
Schering-Plough Corp. and Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche Holding have resolved their legal wrangling over patents for a new group of hepatitis drugs, the drug makers said Monday.
Under the agreement, the two companies will be able to market their medicines without worrying about infringing rival patents. Terms were not disclosed.
The pact could spawn new business for ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc. in Costa Mesa, which provides a drug that can be used as part of the treatments for hepatitis C, a disease that can cause fatal liver damage.
Analysts have estimated that the market for hepatitis medicines may reach $3 billion within the next few years.
Schering-Plough’s stock edged up 35 cents to $38.75 a share and ICN’s shares rose 14 cents to $32.13. Both stocks trade on the New York Stock Exchange.
The dispute centers on two new medicines--Schering-Plough’s Peg-Intron and Roche’s Pegasys. They’re designed to improve on an earlier group of treatments for hepatitis.
“It’s good news because it removes the uncertainty over Pegasys,” said Kevin Lyne-Smith, an analyst at Bank Julius Baer in Zurich. “In any legal case the only winners are lawyers and this clears it out of the way.”
The companies will seek court dismissal of all patent litigation related to the two products in the United States and Europe.
Schering-Plough, based in Kenilworth, N.J., also will withdraw its opposition to Roche’s application, which is pending in the European Patent Office. Roche Holding is the corporate parent of Hoffmann-La Roche in Nutley, N.J., the company’s U.S. pharmaceutical headquarters.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Schering-Plough’s hepatitis C treatment package comprising Peg-Intron and a second drug, ICN’s Rebetol, also known as ribavirin.
The deal clears the way for Roche to negotiate with ICN for rights to oral ribavirin to be used in combination with Roche’s peginterferon product. Currently, Schering-Plough has exclusive license rights for ribavirin.
Swiss authorities last week approved Roche’s Pegasys. The FDA has not yet granted approval.
