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news.UK-based biotech company SkyePharma has struck a deal making Kos Pharmaceuticals its US marketing partner for its late-stage potential blockbuster asthma treatment, Flutiform.
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Under the deal, Kos will have exclusive rights to market Flutiform in the US and a right of first negotiation in Canada. SkyePharma has received an upfront payment from Kos of $25 million, but could receive up to $165 million in milestone payments on achievement of all regulatory and revenue targets, together with royalties “starting in the mid-teens” on sales by Kos.
The failure to quickly find a partner for Flutiform has been cited as one of the reasons behind SkyePharma’s recent poor financial performance and a cause of a dispute between the company and a group of its shareholders that resulted in a change of management.
While the US represents the largest market opportunity for Flutiform, SkyePharma said that it remains in negotiations with potential partners for Europe and other markets around the world.
“We believe Kos brings a therapeutically focused marketing approach that will optimize the commercial potential of Flutiform in the key US market,” said SkyePharma’s chief executive, Frank Condella
Flutiform is currently in phase III development for the indication of asthma in adults and adolescents and is expected to be submitted for approval by the FDA in the second half of 2007 and to reach the market in 2009. The drug is also under development as a treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).