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Indianapolis, Ind. October 07, 2004
Roche Diagnostics Files Complaint Against Distributor of Blood
Glucose Lancets
On August 25, 2004, Roche Diagnostics filed complaints for patent
and trademark infringement and unfair competition in U.S. District
Court, Southern District of Indiana against Corona, Ca.-based Winsur
Wholesale, Inc. (Winsur). Winsur sells lancets, under the name Softlet
II, which they specifically advertise for use in Roche Diagnostics'
ACCU-CHEK® Softclix lancing device. These sales infringe Roche
Diagnostics' legal rights.
Roche Diagnostics is committed to defending and protecting its
legal rights, and will pursue legal actions against any company
that unlawfully or improperly infringes upon those rights.
Roche Diagnostics' professionals speak to patients, physicians,
pharmacists and diabetes educators every day, and for more than
50 years Roche has worked closely with these customers to ensure
that its products and services reflect their needs. This lawsuit
protects Roche's innovation. By protecting its investments in intellectual
property, Roche Diagnostics can continue its commitment to bring
innovative products and services to people with diabetes.
About Roche and the Roche Diagnostics Division
Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is one of the world's
leading research-intensive healthcare groups. Its core businesses
are pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. As a supplier of innovative
products and services for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment
of disease, the Group contributes on a broad range of fronts to
improving people's health and quality of life. Roche is one of the
leading companies in the global diagnostics market, the leading
supplier of medicines for cancer and transplantation and a market
leader in virology. In 2003, the Pharmaceuticals Division generated
19.8 billion Swiss francs in prescription drug sales, while the
Diagnostics Division posted sales of 7.4 billion Swiss francs. Roche
employs roughly 65,000 people in 150 countries and has R&D agreements
and strategic alliances with numerous partners, including majority
ownership interests in Genentech and Chugai.
Roche's Diagnostics Division, the world leader in in-vitro diagnostics
with a uniquely broad product portfolio, supplies a wide array of
innovative testing products and services to researchers, physicians,
patients, hospitals and laboratories world-wide.
As part of the division, Roche Diabetes Care has been a pioneer
in the development of blood glucose monitoring systems and is a
global leader in providing comprehensive diabetes care. This means
offering people with diabetes innovative products and services reaching
from blood glucose monitoring through data management. For 30 years,
Diabetes Care has been committed to making living easier for people
with diabetes and healthcare professionals by providing innovative
products and services which make diabetes management easier, more
effective and cost efficient. Its main products are the ACCU-CHEK
family of blood glucose meters, test strips, lancing and data management
systems, including the ACCU-CHEK Compact, ACCU-CHEK Advantage and
ACCU-CHEK Softclix.
Roche Diagnostics' North American headquarters is located in Indianapolis,
Ind. (www.roche-diagnostics.us).
For further information, please visit www.roche.com
and www.roche-diagnostics.com.
For more information please contact:
Lori LeRoy
Roche Diagnostics Corporation
317-521-7159
lori.leroy@roche.com
ACCU-CHEK, SOFTCLIX, is a trademark of a Member of the Roche Group.
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