LUXEMBOURG - Friday, February 5th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Luxembourg Government announced a series of measures to position Luxembourg as a European hub in the exploration and use of space resources. Amongst the key steps undertaken, as part of the spaceresources.lu initiative, will be the development of a legal and regulatory framework confirming certainty about the future ownership of minerals extracted in space from Near Earth Objects (NEO’s) such as asteroids.

Luxembourg is the first European country to announce its intention to set out a formal legal framework which ensures that private operators working in space can be confident about their rights to the resources they extract, i.e. rare minerals from asteroids. Such a legal framework will be worked out in full consideration of international law. Luxembourg is eager to engage with other countries on this matter within a multilateral framework.

Luxembourg will also invest in relevan ... Read more »

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. & OSAKA, Japan - Friday, February 5th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

– Takeda obtains rights to Mersana’s XMT-1522 outside U.S. and Canada –

– Takeda to create additional Fleximer ADCs; Mersana to have a co-development option –

– Mersana to receive $40 million upfront, $20 million upon IND clearance and up to $20 million in equity investment –

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Mersana Therapeutics and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE:4502) today announced that they have entered a new strategic partnership granting Takeda rights to Mersana’s lead product candidate, XMT-1522, outside the United States and Canada. The deal also expands an existing collaboration between the companies to provide Takeda with additional access to Mersana’s Fleximer® antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) platform and grants Mersana an option at the end of Phase 1 to co-develop and co-commercialize one of these programs in t ... Read more »

WU® ConnectSM Platform Continues Growth and Expansion; Provides Viber Users the Ability to Send Money to More than 200 Countries and Territories Around the Globe

SAN FRANCISCO - Thursday, February 4th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU), a leader in global payment services, and Viber, a leading mobile messaging app with 664M+ unique users worldwide, today announced an agreement to offer a fast and simple way to send money to friends and family virtually anywhere in the world from the convenience of the Viber app.

Leveraging the recently released WU® ConnectSM platform, the collaboration between Western Union and Viber will focus on three key areas:

    Send money around the world: In this first release, Viber users in the United States will be able to send up to US$499 for pickup at more than 500,000 Western Union® Agent locations in 200+ countries and territories.
  &nbs ... Read more »

COLOMBES, France - Thursday, February 4th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Oberthur Technologies (OT), a leading global provider of embedded security software products, services and solutions, today announces its support to the MasterCard Aid Network by providing pre-loaded chip cards to give people in need access to basic necessities such as food, medicine and shelter.

“We are very proud at OT to contribute to the MasterCard Aid Network to facilitate access for populations to first level aid around the world using chip cards. OT’s chip card technology is a very convenient way of easing aid distribution while maintaining a high level of security” said Eric Duforest, Managing Director of the Financial Services Institutions business at OT.

To address the challenge humanitarian organizations face providing aid in areas of political and economic unrest, MasterCard developed the MasterCard Aid Network, an end-to-end, non-financial service des ... Read more »

INGELHEIM, Germany - Thursday, February 4th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

    SPIRIVA® RESPIMAT® is the first new class of inhaled medicine approved in over 10 years for the treatment of asthma1
    Despite current treatment options almost one in two patients with asthma still experience symptoms,2,3,4 increasing their risk of asthma exacerbations5

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Boehringer Ingelheim today announced that SPIRIVA® RESPIMAT® is now available for the treatment of asthma by prescription in U.S. pharmacies. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a once-daily dose of 2.5 µg for the long-term maintenance treatment of asthma in people ages 12 and older.6 *

“Despite taking other daily maintenance treatments, many people with asthma continue to experience symptoms, including coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath,” said Michael B. Foggs, MD, Chief of Allergy & Immunology, Advocate Medical ... Read more »

TOKYO - Thursday, February 4th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- PENTAX Medical, a division of HOYA Group, has announced the appointment of Gerald W. Bottero to the position of Global President of PENTAX Medical as of February 1st, 2016.

"HOYA Group is pleased to have Gerald W. Bottero lead the global division of PENTAX Medical," said Hiroshi Suzuki, President and CEO of HOYA Group. "Mr. Bottero brings a wealth of knowledge, insight and experience from his various global executive roles within HOYA, especially from our Life Care divisions. He has a proven track record of delivering results through developing and implementing strategic and operational changes in a global multicultural environment. We expect his leadership to further advance the PENTAX Medical growth strategy”.

Mr. Bottero joined HOYA Corporation in 1988 and has served HOYA in a number of Information Technology and Life Care segments. Most recently, he was the president ... Read more »

Eight channels transmitted over Europe via ASTRA 4A at 5 degrees East

LUXEMBOURG - Thursday, February 4th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- SES S.A. (NYSE Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG) announced today that it has signed a multi-year deal with Inter Media Group, Ukraine´s largest media group, for additional capacity to broadcast TV channels on ASTRA 4A at 5 degrees East.

In addition to its two leading channels, Inter and NTN, six additional channels of Inter Media Group will be distributed on ASTRA 4A pursuant to the new capacity agreements.

SES reached a record number of 7,268 TV channels broadcast over the global satellite fleet at the end of 2015. This represented a significant channel growth of 11.3% over the last 12 months, compared with 2% for the rest of the satellite industry. This superior performance is benefiting from the continued globalisation of SES’s video business and growth in emerging markets, including the Central and Easter ... Read more »

Continues Turnaround with Takeda's Growth Drivers: Gastroenterology, Oncology and Emerging Markets

OSAKA, Japan - Thursday, February 4th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TOKYO:4502):

Results of April to December period reaffirms full-year management guidance

    Underlying revenue +3.8% year-to-year (reported revenue growing +4.0% to 1,393.3 billion yen), led by strong performance in the U.S. and the emerging markets
    Underlying Core Earnings +1.5% year-to-year (operating profit -15.9% to 167.5 billion yen)
    Underlying Core EPS +17.3% year-to year (reported EPS growing +43% to 145 yen)

Contribution of Takeda's growth drivers

    Consolidated underlying revenue of gastroenterology, oncology and emerging markets – Takeda's growth drivers – is +8.5% year-to-year
    Gastroent ... Read more »

SHANGHAI - Thursday, February 4th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In the summer of 2015, an event drew record-breaking single-day crowds of over 170,000 professionals to Shanghai solely for the healthcare sector. It was a mega trade event combining the top medical and pharmaceutical events in China, the Health Industry Summit.

With the start of China’s 13th Five-year plan in 2016, the “Health China 2020” program focusing on the co-development of healthcare, pharmaceutical production and health insurance, separation of prescribing and dispensing and the hierarchical medical system has become a national strategy. It comes as one additional boost to many already eyeing the opportunities from the increasingly ageing population and the expected population boom in light of the reversal of the single-child policy. By the end of 2015, over 100 traditionally non-healthcare-oriented traded companies in China had taken healthcare as one of their investmen ... Read more »

New partnership announced between AGCO and Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA)

DULUTH, Ga - Thursday, February 4th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AGCO (NYSE: AGCO), a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment and solutions, is showcasing its new Massey Ferguson Farm Mechanisation Package at the 10th Biennial US-Africa Business Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 1st-4th February 2016. The package is aimed at farmers who are taking their first step in mechanised farming and is primarily based upon the newly launched MF 300 Series tractor plus a set of MF implements which forms part of a wider package of support through the Massey Ferguson Africa distribution network. This package is at the heart of AGCO’s strategy to help transform agriculture in Africa through inclusive and sustainable mechanisation solutions.

Aligned with this strategy is the announcement of a new partnership between AGCO and the international devel ... Read more »