A patent dispute in the US over omega-3 supplementary drug Lovaza between Norwegian pharmaceutical company Pronova BioPharma Norge and Apotex Corp has been settled.
The result allows the companies to launch the generic version of Lovaza, for which GlaxoSmithKline holds the rights, in the US. The launch could take place in the first quarter of 2015 or earlier, depending on certain circumstances.
The companies did not disclose any other terms of the settlement.
For the full-year 2010, Lovaza generated £530m ($822m) in revenues for GlaxoSmithKline from the US and Puerto Rico.
GlaxoSmithKline gained the US and Puerto Rican marketing rights of Lovaza, an FDA-approved treatment for adult patients with very high levels of triglycerides, through the acquisition of Reliant Pharmaceuticals in December 2007.
