Drugmaker AstraZeneca settles Crestor patent case

London: Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca on Monday said it had settled a long-running patent lawsuit over its top-selling drug Crestor.

add_main_imageAstraZeneca said in a statement that the deal would protect its sales of the anti-cholesterol drug until 2016.

“AstraZeneca today announced that it has entered into a settlement agreement in its US patent infringement litigation against Watson Laboratories, Inc., Actavis, Inc. (formerly known as Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc.), and EGIS Pharmaceuticals,” the company said.NextMAds

Crestor generated $6.25 billion of sales in 2012, down from $6.6 billion in 2011 after losing patent protection in certain regions.

AstraZeneca’s announcement comes after it last week said it was cutting 3,900 jobs—in a major restructuring of the group over the next three years.

The group currently employs about 57,000 staff worldwide.

Dow Jones Newswires contributed to this story.