Purdue Pharmaceutical and Transcept Pharmaceuticals have signed a deal to commercialize the sleep aid Intermezzo. Purdue gains the rights to market, sell and distribute Intermezzo in the United States and the right to negotiate for the commercialization of the product in Canada and Mexico. Transcept keeps ex-U.S. rights as well as the option to co-promote Intermezzo to U.S. psychiatrists. In return Transcept gains an upfront payment of $25 million as well as a $30 million milestone once Intermezzo is approved. The California-based company could also earn an additional $90 million in milestone payments based on intellectual property rights and sales targets. Finally, Transcept stands to gain double-digit royalties on U.S. sales of the sleep drug. Intermezzo has a PDUFA date of October 30th.
If the FDA approves Intermezzo, it would be the first drug approved for patients who wake up in the middle of the night and have trouble falling back to sleep. "This agreement is part of Purdue's plan to diversify our product portfolio and broaden our commercial focus into therapeutic areas that complement our leadership position in pain management," said Purdue CEO John H. Stewart.
- here's the release
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