Samsung, Biogen Co-Operate Amid Italian Antitrust Investigation Into Biosimilar Lucentis

Byooviz Biosimilar Not Available In Italy After August 2021 MAA; Conduct ‘Anomalous’

 
• By Dean Rudge
  
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Did Samsung Bioepis and Biogen choose early US access for its Lucentis biosimilar in exchange for postponing launch in other global markets? That’s what Italy’s competition authority believes, as it kicked off an investigation into both the biosimilar sponsors and originators Genentech and Novartis.

Many Hands Holding the Red Word Competition, Isolated
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Italy’s competition authority has opened an investigation into European Lucentis (ranibizumab) biosimilar sponsors Samsung Bioepis and Biogen and originators Genentech and Novartis, alleging that the companies unlawfully coordinated their commercial strategies to postpone the launch of Samsung/Biogen’s Byooviz biosimilar, and restrict a market which could have formed as early as July 2022.

Officials from the Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM) have carried out inspections at the Biogen Italia S.r.l.,...

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