Pharmacyclics to maintain all US Rights
Conference Call to discuss the company's third quarter financial results is scheduled for April 23, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. EDT (8:00 a.m. PDT).
SUNNYVALE, Calif., April 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pharmacyclics, Inc. (Nasdaq: PCYC) today announced that it has entered into a global strategic alliance with Servier, the leading French independent pharmaceutical company. The alliance will focus on the research, development, and commercialization of Pharmacyclics' PCI-24781, an orally active, novel, small molecule inhibitor of Pan HDAC enzymes, that is currently in Phase I/II clinical trials in the United States and being developed for the treatment of solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. Pharmacyclics expects that this alliance will enable it to aggressively pursue its goal of developing and commercializing its innovative anti-cancer Pan HDAC inhibitor agents.
'This alliance with Servier allows us to accelerate our productive discovery efforts, to expand our clinical development capabilities and potentially commercialize our unique and differentiated Pan HDAC inhibitor product outside of the United States in rapid fashion,' said Robert W. Duggan, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pharmacyclics. 'We are honored to be partnering with the Servier Company, they are incredibly professional in all aspects of their business dealings. Their success and advancement of human healthcare is respected around the world.'
Under the terms of the agreement, Servier acquired the exclusive right to develop and commercialize the Pan HDAC inhibitor product worldwide except for the United States and will pay a royalty to Pharmacyclics on sales outside of the United States. Pharmacyclics will continue to own all rights within the United States. Pharmacyclics will receive from Servier upfront payments totaling $11 Million on signing the contract and an additional guaranteed $4 Million for research collaboration over a 24 month period, paid in equal increments every 6 months with the initial payment due October 1, 2009. Servier will pay for all development costs outside the United States. In addition Pharmacyclics will receive $24.5 Million based on the achievement of certain milestones up to and including commercialization.
