Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited and Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America resolving outstanding patent litigation related to Watson’s generic equivalent version of Actos (Pioglitazone Hydrochloride) 15mg, 30mg and 45mg tablets. Under terms of the agreement, Takeda granted Watson a non-exclusive royalty free license to its U.S. patents covering Actos@. Under the terms of the agreement, Watson is permitted to launch its generic equivalent version of Actos on August 17, 2012, or earlier under certain circumstances.

Actos had approximately $3.4 billion in brand sales for the twelve months ending December 31, 2009, according to IMS Health. Actos is a once-daily oral prescription medication that, with diet and exercise, has been shown to be effective for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Actos is a registered trademark of Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd.