Fuente: © Pfizer
http://www.pfizer.com/

PFIZER: Australian Federal Court Upholds Basic Lipitor Patent, Preventing Launch of Generic Ranbaxy Product

Lipitor Protected from Generic Competition in Australia until 2012

/noticias.info/ NEW YORK -- Pfizer Inc said today that the Australian Federal Court in Victoria has upheld the exclusivity of its basic patent covering atorvastatin, the active ingredient in Lipitor. The ruling, the culmination of a lawsuit filed in 2005 by generic drug manufacturer Ranbaxy, includes an injunction against Ranbaxy's product and preserves Lipitor's patent coverage in Australia through May 2012. Ranbaxy can appeal the decision.

The court found that a proposed Ranbaxy generic product would infringe Pfizer's basic Lipitor patent (AU 601,981). A second patent covering the calcium salt of atorvastatin (AU 628,198), which expires in September 2012, was ruled invalid by the court. Pfizer will appeal that ruling.

The Australian decision will not impact ongoing Lipitor patent actions in other countries. Pfizer said it will continue to vigorously defend against challenges to its intellectual property, noting that patents provide the necessary incentive to invest in new and life-saving medicines that benefit millions of patients globally.

Photo: A free corporate logo to accompany this story is available
immediately via Wieck Photo Database to any media with telephoto receiver or
electronic darkroom, PC or Macintosh, that can accept overhead transmissions.

To retrieve a logo, please call 972-392-0888
SOURCE: Pfizer Inc

CONTACT: Bryant Haskins, +1-212-733-8719

Web site: http://www.pfizer.com/ notas_de_prensa_archivo