RANBAXY BECOMES THE FIRST COMPANY TO LAUNCH GENERIC ATORVASTATIN IN ITALY, NETHERLANDS & SWEDEN
EARLY ENTRY OF GENERIC PRIOR TO PATENT EXPIRY
Gurgaon, India, March 06, 2012
Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited (Ranbaxy) announced that the company has launched the generic versions of Atorvastatin tablets, 10mg, 20 mg, 40mg and 80mg in Italy and Sweden and 10mg, 20mg and 40mg in the Netherlands, after receiving approval from the respective local Regulatory Authorities. In accordance with its settlement agreement with Pfizer, Ranbaxy has introduced the product ahead of the applicable patent expiries. Pfizer's patent expires in Italy on May 8, 2012 and in the Netherlands and Sweden on May 06, 2012.
Atorvastatin, a cholesterol reducing drug, is the largest selling pharmaceutical product in Italy with sales of US$ 377 Mn (IMS MAT Dec., 2011). The market size for Atorvastatin in the Netherlands is US$ 164.4 Mn (IMS MAT Dec., 2011) and in Sweden is US$ 55 Mn (IMS MAT Dec., 2011) and is the largest selling Statin product in these two markets.
Ranbaxy will be promoting the drug directly to all channel partners including retail pharmacies and wholesalers in Italy and the Netherlands. In Sweden the company will be offering its drug through the official pricing and reimbursement scheme covering generic medicines, to all retail pharmacies.
Commenting on the launch, Mr. Debashis Dasgupta, Regional Director for Ranbaxy in Western Europe, said, "Ranbaxy is pleased to offer a generic version of the most prescribed statin, in Italy, the Netherlands and Sweden. It is an effective, high quality and affordable bio-equivalent to the innovator product and will immensely benefit the healthcare systems and patients in these countries."
Ranbaxy Italia is among the top 10 pharmaceutical companies in the fast growing generic market in Italy and offers a wide range of products covering more than 25 therapeutic segments. In the Netherlands and Sweden, Ranbaxy offers a variety of products in Antibiotic, CVS, CNS, GI, Metabolic, BPH, Ortho segments etc., with market leadership in certain major molecules.
Earlier on November 30, 2011, Ranbaxy launched Atorvastatin, a generic version of Lipitor® in the U.S. market with 180 days of marketing exclusivity, as it was a First-to-File (FTF) applicant for the product. Recently, in February 2012, Ranbaxy became the first company to launch generic Atorvastatin in Australia.
Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited, India's largest pharmaceutical company, is an integrated, research based, international pharmaceutical company producing a wide range of quality, affordable generic medicines, trusted by healthcare professionals and patients across geographies. Ranbaxy's continued focus on R&D has resulted in several approvals, in developed and emerging markets many of which incorporate proprietary Novel Drug Delivery Systems (NDDS) and technologies, developed at its own labs. The company has further strengthened its focus on generics research and is increasingly working on more complex and specialty areas. Ranbaxy serves its customers in over 125 countries and has an expanding international portfolio of affiliates, joint ventures and alliances, ground operations in 46 countries and manufacturing operations in 7 countries. Ranbaxy is a member of the Daiichi Sankyo Group. Through strategic in-licensing opportunities and its hybrid business model with Daiichi Sankyo, a leading global pharma innovator headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, Ranbaxy is introducing many innovator products in markets around the world, where it has a strong presence. This is in line with the company's commitment to increase penetration and improve access to medicines, across the globe. For more information, please visit www.ranbaxy.com.
Lipitor® is a registered trademark of Pfizer.