Novartis International AG is a multinational pharmaceutical company based in Basel, Switzerland, ranking number three in sales among the world-wide industry, which accounted 36.173 billon in 2008. It currently is the sixth largest pharmaceutical company in terms of revenue ($41.5 billion in 2009) with a profit margin of about 20%, which is the same as its industry competitors. Their profits were down by 31% from 2007 levels Novartis manufactures drugs such as clozapine (Clozaril), diclofenac (Voltaren), carbamazepine (Tegretol), valsartan (Diovan), imatinib mesylate (Gleevec / Glivec), ciclosporin (Neoral / Sandimmun), letrozole (Femara), methylphenidate (Ritalin), terbinafine (Lamisil), and others. Renamed to Novartis following an acquisition by Ciba-Geigy, it owns Sandoz, a large manufacturer of generic drugs. The company formerly owned the Gerber Products Company, a major infant and baby products producer, but sold it to Nestlé on 1 September 2007. Novartis is a full member of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) and of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA)
Novartis was created in 1996 from the merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz Laboratories, both Swiss companies with long histories. Ciba-Geigy was formed in 1970 by the merger of J. R. Geigy Ltd (founded in Basel in 1758) and CIBA (founded in Basel in 1859). Combining the histories of the merger partners, the company's effective history spans 250 years. After the merger, Novartis reorganized its operating units and spun out its chemical activities as Ciba Specialty Chemicals (now a part of BASF).
In 1998 the company made headlines with its biotechnology licensing agreement with the University of California at Berkeley Department of Plant and Microbial Biology. Critics of the agreement expressed concern over prospects that the agreement would diminish academic objectivity, or lead to the commercialization of genetically modified plants. The agreement expired in 2003.
Novartis combined its agricultural division with that of AstraZeneca to create, Syngenta, in November 2000.
In 2003, Novartis created a subsidiary that bundles its generic drug production, reusing the predecessor brand name of Sandoz. In 2005, Novartis introduced Certican (Everolimus), an immunosuppressant, and in October 2006 began marketing Telbivudine, a new antiviral drug for hepatitis B.
On 20 April 2006, Novartis acquired the California-based Chiron Corporation. Chiron formerly was divided into three units: Chiron Vaccines, Chiron Blood Testing, and Chiron BioPharmaceuticals, to be integrated into Novartis Pharmaceuticals. Chiron Vaccines and Chiron Blood Testing now are combined to form Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics.
The ongoing Basel Campus Project has the aim to transform the St. Johann site - Novartis headquarters in Basel - "from an industrial complex to a place of innovation, knowledge, and encounter".On 12 October 2009, Novartis has entered into an agreement for exclusive US and Canadian rights to Fanapt(iloperidone), a new oral medication that is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the acute treatment of adults with schizophrenia.
On 6 November 2009, Novartis reached an agreement to acquire an 85% stake in the Chinese vaccines company Zhejiang Tianyuan Bio-Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. as part of a strategic initiative to build a vaccines industry leader in this country and expand the Group's limited presence in this fast-growing market segment. This proposed acquisition will require government and regulatory approvals in China.
On 4 January 2010, Novartis offered to pay US $39.3 billion to fully acquire Alcon, the world’s largest eye-care company, including a majority stake held by Nestlé. Novartis had bought 25% of Alcon in 2008.
On 11 March 2010, Novartis settled their patent suit in the US District Court for the District of New Jersey with IntelliPharmaCeutics International, Ltd., a Canada-based specialty pharmaceutical company, and its licensee Par Pharmaceutical Inc. over a generic version of the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder drug Focalin XR (dexmethylphenidate hydrochloride).
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