21 March 2017
AFT Pharmaceuticals In-Licenses NovaTears® in Australia and New Zealand
AFT Pharmaceuticals (AFT) has completed a licensing agreement with Novaliq, a German specialty pharmaceutical company,
to distribute NovaTears® in Australia and New Zealand.
NovaTears® is an ophthalmic product for the treatment of evaporative dry eye diseases (DEDs) developed by Novaliq and sold across
Europe under the brand nameEvoTears®.
Under the terms of the agreement, Novaliq has granted AFT an exclusive license for the commercialisation of NovaTears® across Australasia. In return for these rights, Novaliq will receive an undisclosed upfront payment and royalties on net
sales ofNovaTears®.
“AFT is dedicated to bringing innovative products to market that make a real difference to people’s health,” said Dr
Hartley Atkinson, CEO of AFT.
“The addition of NovaTears® to our eye care line will be welcomed by doctors and patients alike. It’s a first-in-class, water-free and
preservative-free treatment based on Novaliq’s proprietary EyeSol® technology platform. NovaTears® supports the lipid layer of the tear film by its ability to quickly spread and be absorbed into the eye. We believe that
this feature - combined with its small droplet size - will provide superior benefits to patients with evaporative dry
eye disease.”
“This will also help advance our position in the lubricating eye drop market where currently AFT holds the number 4
position in both Australia and New Zealand. This also fits with our strategy of strengthening our market position in
categories where we already hold a significant position. Sales from the New Zealand market are expected to be achieved
within the FY2018 financial year, and Australian sales the year following,” said Dr Atkinson.
“Novaliq is delighted to collaborate with AFT, a leading and innovative pharmaceutical company with a strong commitment
to eye care,” said Christian Roesky, PhD, CEO of Novaliq.
“NovaTears® provides a highly differentiated and clinically validated treatment option that significantly improves the signs and
symptoms of evaporative DED and Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), highly underserved diseases. We are confident that
dry eye patients in Australasia will greatly benefit from the use of NovaTears® and our partnership with AFT.”
[End of release]