King and Depomed sign Glumetza co-promotion deal

Glumetza is a once-daily extended-release formulation of metformin for the treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes that Depomed developed utilizing its proprietary AcuForm drug delivery technology.

Under the terms of the agreement, King will assume responsibility for selling Glumetza in the US and Puerto Rico, while Depomed has the right to co-promote the product using its own sales force at some point in the future.

Depomed will book top line revenue and pay King a fee from gross profits. The companies will share all marketing expenses based on an agreed percentage. Depomed will be responsible for the manufacture and distribution of Glumetza, while King will bear all costs related to the utilization of its sales force for the product.

A joint commercialization committee formed with representatives from both companies will have responsibility for marketing strategies and tactics.

“This collaboration significantly strengthens our cardiovascular/metabolics portfolio and strategically complements our largest selling product, Altace (ramipril),” stated Brian Markison, president and CEO of King. “We will invest incrementally in sales and marketing as we further leverage our commercial operations platform to launch Glumetza in the third quarter of this year.”

The agreement also covers the development of combination products, which may be designed with metformin and another complementary drug in a single tablet. The companies recognized the potential of such products and have reserved the option to further negotiate a program within six months.

The FDA approved Glumetza for marketing in June 2005 and Depomed and King expect to launch the product in the US in the third quarter of 2006.