Join our daily newsletter At The Bell to receive exclusive market insights
- The Australian High Court sides with AFT Pharmaceuticals (AFP) in a dispute over advertising comparing its product, Maxigesic, to other forms of pain relief
- The court dismisses complaint by UK-based Reckitt & Benckiser against a judgment that found AFT was justified in making a series of claims in relation to the efficacy of its pain relief tablets
- Currently, AFT is in the process of launching the first of a number of Maxigesic oral dose form line extensions in the Australian market, including hot drink sachets
- AFT presented the sachets at the 2022 Australian Pharmacy Professional conference
- AFP shares last traded at $3.39
The Australian High Court has sided with AFT Pharmaceuticals (AFP) in a dispute over advertising comparing its product, Maxigesic, to other forms of pain relief.
On 7 April, the court turned down the application by UK-based Reckitt & Benckiser to appeal the December 2021 judgment that found AFT was justified in making a series of claims in relation to the efficacy of its pain relief tablets.
AFT Managing Director Hartley Atkinson said the company was pleased with the outcome, and said the company “takes our legal obligations around product promotion seriously and find this judgement final vindication of our approach”.
“The judgement means we are now able to use in promotional materials the results of the Daniels study, which compared the US formulation of Maxigesic (a combination of paracetamol and ibuprofen) with paracetamol and ibuprofen and placebo individually in 408 patients having dental surgery,” he said.
“We believe informing customers of the analgesic effect of our medicine when compared to the individual paracetamol or ibuprofen agents will assist us to consolidate our position and accelerate our sales growth path.”
Currently, AFT is in the process of launching the first of a number of Maxigesic oral dose
form line extensions in the Australian market, including its Maxigesic Hot Drink Sachets which contain 1000 milligrams of paracetamol and 300mg of ibuprofen.
AFT presented the sachets at the 2022 Australian Pharmacy Professional conference on the Gold Coast in March. The conference, Australasia’s most significant pharmacy industry event, attracted around 7,000 attendees.
“It was great to be able to attend in person and reconnect with our key Australian customer base,” Dr Atkinson said.
AFP shares last traded at $3.39 prior to market open.
