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Making or breaking a deal

Nature Biotechnology volume 18, page 909 (2000)Cite this article

To the editor

In their recent article “Deals that make sense,” Moscho et al.1 propose a model for valuing the respective contributions of licensor and licensee for biotechnology product deals. They seem to move from their model based on industry average valuations (which are themselves problematic) to the specifics of the Biochem Pharma–Glaxo example as if they are interchangeable. Are the averages, in fact, appropriate for the cited Biochem Pharma–Glaxo example? An important question, as “applying pharmaceutical average numbers” and their “formula for determining the value of financial investments” leads directly to their assertion that Biochem Pharma “would have more than doubled its royalty rate” had Biochem Pharma used the proposed model. The problems with their “industry average” assumptions do not stop there:

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References

  1. Moscho, A., Hodits, R.A., Janus, F. & Leiter, J.M.E. Nat. Biotechnol. 18, 719–722 ( 2000).

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  1. Vice president, business development, Aventis Pasteur Inc, Swiftwater, 18370, PA

    Douglas B. Reynolds

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  1. Douglas B. Reynolds
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Reynolds, D. Making or breaking a deal. Nat Biotechnol 18, 909 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/79303

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