Japan's largest pharma company,Takeda buys license for obesity drug

Japan's largest pharma company, Takeda, has struck a potentially major deal with US-based Orexigen Therapeutics, involving the Americas marketing rights for Orexigen's obesity drug Contrave. Takeda will pay Orexigen an upfront fee of US$50m for exclusive marketing rights in the USA, Mexico, and Canada, and will pay out up to US$1bn if Orexigen is able to get the drug approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.  (Source: thepharmaletter.com, Sep 3, 2010)