Roche to Pay Igen in Licensing Case

Switzerland’s Roche Holding Ltd. must pay $501 million in damages to Igen International Inc. in a licensing dispute over blood-testing technology used in Roche’s diagnostic equipment, jurors ruled.

Jurors in federal court in Greenbelt, Md., found that officials of Roche’s diagnostic unit deliberately underpaid royalties on the technology, used to test bodily fluids for cancer and thyroid problems.

Although the jury’s ruling returns the testing-technology license to Igen, company officials have agreed not to make Roche officials stop using the system until all appeals are exhausted.