Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer Sign Development and Commercialization Pact

New York (Apr. 26)-Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMS, www.bms.com) and Pfizer, Inc. (www.pfizer.com) entered into a collaborative agreement for the development and commercialization of apixaban, an anticoagulant that BMS discovered. The companies are studying apixaban’s ability to prevent and treat various venous and arterial thrombotic conditions, including deep-vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism.

According to the agreement, Pfizer will pay $250 million upfront to BMS and will fund 60% of development costs from January 1, 2007 onward. BMS will pay the remaining development costs. Pfizer may make as much as $750 million in additional payments to BMS, depending on the achievement of developmental and regulatory milestones. The companies will share responsibility for devising the clinical and marketing strategies for apixaban and will divide commercialization expenses, profits, and losses equally.

BMS and Pfizer also agreed to cooperate on the research, development, and commercialization of a Pfizer discovery program. Among the program’s focuses are advanced preclinical compounds that potentially could treat metabolic disorders such as obesity and diabetes.