For Immediate Release

Company name: DAIICHI SANKYO COMPANY, LIMITED
Representative: Takashi Shoda, President and Representative Director
(Code no.: 4568, First Seengction, Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya Stock Exchanges)
Please address inquiries to Toshio Takahashi, Corporate Officer in Charge,
Corporate Communications Department
Telephone: +81-3-6225-1126

Canadian Levofloxacin Patent Upheld by Federal Judge

TOKYO - DAIICHI SANKYO CO., LTD. (President & CEO: Takashi Shoda), one of Japan's leading pharmaceutical companies having Sankyo Co., Ltd. and Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd as wholly owned subsidiaries, today announced that the Canadian Federal Court upheld Daiichi's patent on its broad spectrum antibacterial agent, levofloxacin.

The Canadian Federal Court ruled on October 17, 2006 that Daiichi's patent (No. 1,304,080) for levofloxacin is valid and infringed by the manufacturing and selling by Novopharm Limited of generic levofloxacin tablets. As a result of the Court's decision, generic drug manufacturer Novopharm is enjoined as of November 16, 2006 from making, using, offering to sell, or selling a generic version of levofloxacin tablets in the Canadian market no earlier than the expiration of Daiichi's patent on June 23, 2009.

Daiichi granted an exclusive license to Johnson & Johnson to make, use, and sell pharmaceutical preparations containing levofloxacin in Canada with the right of sublicense. Janssen-Ortho Inc. is the exclusive sub-licensee for levofloxacin tablets in Canada. Janssen-Ortho Inc. markets levofloxacin tablets in Canada under the trade name LEVAQUIN®. Janssen-Ortho Inc. is a co-plaintiff in this litigation.

DAIICHI SANKYO COMPANY, LIMITED
DAIICHI SANKYO COMPANY, LIMITED was established on September 28, 2005 as the joint holding company of two major Japanese pharmaceutical companies - Sankyo Co., Ltd. and Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. DAIICHI SANKYO aims to become a Global Pharma Innovator, continuously generating innovative drugs and services and maximizing its corporate value. Sankyo and Daiichi Pharmaceutical have a broad range of major drug products on the Japanese market, including the antihypertensive Olmetec® (olmesartan medoxomil) and the synthetic antibacterial agent Cravit® (levofloxacin) and are strongly promoting drug information provision activities. Both companies specialize in the field of cardiovascular disease and have used their cumulative knowledge and expertise as a foundation for developing an abundant product lineup and R&D pipeline.
For further details, please refer to the company Web site, at
https://www.daiichisankyo.co.jp/eng.