GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer are pooling a group of marketed and experimental HIV/AIDS drugs into a new company designed to spread the risk of advancing new therapies for the lethal virus.
Glaxo will own 85 percent of the new company, with Pfizer taking the remaining 15 percent. And together they will manage 11 marketed drugs that garnered about $2.4 billion in revenue last year. The new company will also be responsible for researching six experimental drugs for HIV/AIDS, contracting for R&D services directly from its two parent companies.
"At the core of this specialist business is a broad portfolio of products and pipeline assets, which can be more effectively leveraged through the new company's strong revenue base and dedicated research capability," said Glaxo Chief Executive Andrew Witty.
By pooling approved and experimental therapies into one entity, the companies believe they'll have a better chance at creating new fixed-dose therapies that combine different drugs into new cocktail therapies. There is no cure for HIV/AIDS, which afflicts tens of millions of people.
- here's the joint release
- read the report from Reuters