Amgen Resolves EPO Patent Dispute With Roche
23 December 2009 - 8:04AM
PR Newswire (US)
Roche Admits Infringement And Validity Of Amgen's EPO Patents;
Court Enters Permanent Injunction; Amgen Allows Roche's MIRCERA
Onto U.S. Market In Mid-2014 THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., Dec. 22
/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN) announced today that
the United States (U.S.) District Court in Boston has entered final
judgment and a permanent injunction against Roche prohibiting Roche
from infringing Amgen's patents on recombinant erythropoietin
(EPO), thus bringing the five-year patent infringement dispute to
an end. Today's judgment was accompanied by Roche's admission that
the five Amgen EPO patents involved in the lawsuit are valid,
enforceable and infringed by Roche's pegylated-erythropoietin
(peg-EPO) product, MIRCERA and by Amgen allowing Roche to begin
selling MIRCERA in the U.S. in mid-2014 under terms of a limited
license agreement. The settlement terms do not include any
financial payments between the parties. (Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081015/AMGENLOGO) "We are
very pleased with this agreement, a victory for Amgen that
reaffirms the validity of our patents and brings to an end this
long-standing legal dispute," said David Scott, senior vice
president and general counsel for Amgen. "The settlement provides
certainty to both companies and allows Amgen to focus intently on
investing in innovative research and delivering medicines that
treat grievous, unmet medical needs." About Amgen Amgen discovers,
develops, manufactures and delivers innovative human therapeutics.
A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen was one of the first
companies to realize the new science's promise by bringing safe and
effective medicines from lab, to manufacturing plant, to patient.
Amgen therapeutics have changed the practice of medicine, helping
millions of people around the world in the fight against cancer,
kidney disease, rheumatoid arthritis and other serious illnesses.
With a deep and broad pipeline of potential new medicines, Amgen
remains committed to advancing science to dramatically improve
people's lives. To learn more about our pioneering science and our
vital medicines, visit http://www.amgen.com/. Contact: David Polk
(805) 447-4613 (media) John Shutter (805) 447-1060 (investors)
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081015/AMGENLOGO
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Amgen CONTACT: Media, David
Polk, +1-805-447-4613 , or Investors, John Shutter,
+1-805-447-1060, both of Amgen Web Site: http://www.amgen.com/
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