European Commission finds France's Servier provided misleading and incorrect information

The European Commission has addressed a Statement of Objections under European Union antitrust rules to French independent pharmaceutical company Laboratoires Servier, noting that, on a provisional view, it has evidence that Servier has provided misleading and incorrect information in reply to a request for information in the context of the pharmaceutical competition sector inquiry.

Under the auspices of former European Competition Commissioner Nellie Kroes, drugmakers in Europe were subjected to several investigations, including 'dawn raids' on their premises, of which Servier was one (The Pharma Letters passim). According to the initial findings last year, there was evidence that brand-name drugmakers had engaged in practices with the objective of delaying or blocking market entry of competing medicines. And, only this month, AstraZeneca was fined 52 million euros ($66.6 million) in an antitrust case involving its ulcer drug Losec (omeprazole; TPL July 2).

In the course of the competition inquiry into the pharmaceutical sector, which started in January 2008 (IP/08/49) and was concluded in July 2009 (IP/09/1098 and MEMO/09/321), the Commission sent out several questionnaires to various stakeholders, in particular pharmaceutical companies, including Servier. Following further investigation in relation to Servier's reply to a questionnaire, the Commission takes the preliminary view that this reply included information which appears to be misleading and incorrect.