ZymoGenetics and Merck Serono Restructure Partnership
Wednesday September 3, 6:00 am ET
Conference call to be held September 3, 2008 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ZymoGenetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZGEN - News) today announced a restructuring of its partnership with Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. With respect to the ongoing development of atacicept, ZymoGenetics exercised its contractual right to convert to a worldwide royalty license. By making this election, ZymoGenetics will no longer be responsible for funding development costs, and Merck Serono will fund 100% of the program costs on a worldwide basis. Merck Serono will now have exclusive worldwide development and commercialization rights for atacicept, including in North America. Merck Serono will make milestone payments to ZymoGenetics, as agreed in the original contract between the two companies signed in 2001, and pay royalties on worldwide net sales.
“We believe that atacicept holds tremendous promise as a potential treatment for autoimmune diseases, with a broad, parallel path of development in lupus, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis. Converting to a royalty position on atacicept allows us to avoid a major capital commitment, reduce expenses and preserve cash over the next several years, while securing the value of our atacicept asset,” said Douglas E. Williams, Ph.D., President of ZymoGenetics.
The companies also revised their research alliance to achieve greater operational efficiencies. ZymoGenetics will now control the development and commercialization of IL-31 mAb, and Merck Serono will have the full responsibility for developing and commercializing IL-17RC. Both compounds are drug candidates for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. Future product candidates resulting from the companies’ activities under the research alliance will be exclusively licensed for development and commercialization to either ZymoGenetics or Merck Serono.
“This restructuring of our partnership with ZymoGenetics emphasizes the importance of atacicept and our commitment to the program,” added Vincent Aurentz, Executive Vice President Portfolio Management & Business Development at Merck Serono. “It also demonstrates the need to be flexible in managing successful partnerships to maximize their potential. Having the responsibility for development and exclusive commercialization rights for atacicept also in North America strengthens the overall strategic value of atacicept for Merck Serono.”
Conference Call and Webcast Information
A ZymoGenetics conference call will be held on September 3, 2008 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time and may be accessed at www.zymogenetics.com or by dialing 877-407-0778 (International: 201-689-8565). Participants should dial in to the call approximately 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time to register. A live webcast of the presentation can be accessed by going to: www.zymogenetics.com. The webcast will be archived for 30 days.
For replay, please visit www.zymogenetics.com or use the following information:
* U.S. callers: 877-660-6853
* International callers: 201-612-7415
Replay passcode account #: 286
Conference ID #: 296009
surf's up......crikey
