Roche and Meda, an international specialty pharmaceutical company based in Solna (Stockholm), Sweden, have signed an agreement for the sale of four Roche pharmaceutical products to Meda. The world-wide product rights for Marcoumar (Anticoagulant), Torem (Loop diuretic), Tilcotil (painful musculoskeletal disorders) and Aurorix (Depression) are being transferred to Meda for a total amount of 120 million Euros (approximately 195 million Swiss francs at current exchange rates). The transaction is expected to close in late 2008 and is subject to standard closing conditions.

The total amount of global sales generated by these products represents 0.3 per cent of the Pharmaceuticals Division's sales for Roche. With this divestment Roche further underlines its strategy of focusing on core products from its innovation-driven pharmaceutical and diagnostic pipelines, which offer significant potential for high value creation, both for the patients and the company.

Meda AB (publ) is an international specialty pharma company that concentrates on marketing and market-adapted product development. Acquisitions and long-term partnerships are fundamental factors that drive the company's strategy.

Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is one of the world's leading research-focused healthcare groups in the fields of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics.