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Collaboration Agreements
12 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2019
Organization Consolidation And Presentation Of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Collaboration Agreements

7. Collaboration Agreements

AbbVie Collaboration

On November 27, 2006, the Company entered into a Collaborative Development and License Agreement (the “AbbVie Agreement”) with Abbott Laboratories to identify, develop and commercialize HCV NS3 and NS3/4A protease inhibitor compounds, including paritaprevir and glecaprevir. The agreement was assigned by Abbott to AbbVie Inc. on January 1, 2013 in connection with Abbott’s transfer of its research-based pharmaceuticals business to AbbVie.

Under the terms of the AbbVie Agreement, as amended, AbbVie paid the Company upfront license payments and full-time equivalent (“FTE”) reimbursements to fund research activities. The Company is also eligible to receive milestone payments for the successful development by AbbVie of one or more HCV compounds, as well as annually tiered, per-product royalties on the portion of AbbVie’s net sales of its HCV treatment regimens allocated to the protease inhibitor product.

The Company determined that the deliverables under the AbbVie Agreement included (i) the non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide research license and the exclusive, royalty-bearing development and commercialization license, (ii) the research services, and (iii) a commitment to participate on a steering committee, all of which were to be delivered over a three-year period. The Company concluded that the license did not have standalone value as it was dependent, in part, upon the Company’s continuing involvement in the HCV protease inhibitor research and its involvement in the joint steering committee. Additionally, the undelivered items, including the Company’s participation in the joint steering committee, which was considered participatory due to its decision making responsibilities, and the research services, did not have vendor-specific objective evidence (“VSOE”) or vendor objective evidence (“VOE”) of fair value. Therefore, the license, the research services, and the joint steering committee participation were treated as a single unit of accounting. Accordingly, all amounts received were deferred, and revenue was recognized using the proportional performance model over the period during which the Company performed research services in connection with the AbbVie Agreement, as amended.

Subsequent to the research and evaluation period, which ended in June 2011, all decisions related to the development, commercialization and marketing have been made by AbbVie. The Company has the right to continue to attend the joint steering committee meetings to monitor the development and marketing plans; however, the Company has no decision-making rights. As such, the joint steering committee commitment became protective in nature as of June 16, 2011.

During the years ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, the Company recognized $15,000 and $65,000, respectively, in milestone payments under the AbbVie Agreement as a result of AbbVie’s commercialization regulatory approvals. From commencement of the collaboration through September 30, 2019 the Company has received an upfront license payment, research funding, milestone payments, and preferred stock financing totaling $396,000 under the AbbVie agreement. Since the Company completed all its performance obligations under the AbbVie Agreement by the end of fiscal 2011, any milestone payments earned since then have been recognized as revenue when the associated milestone was achieved by AbbVie.

The Company is also receiving annually tiered royalties per Company protease product ranging from ten percent up to twenty percent, or on a blended basis from the low double digits up to the high teens, on the portion of AbbVie’s calendar year net sales of each HCV regimen that is allocated to the protease inhibitor product in the regimen. Beginning with each January 1, the cumulative net sales of a given royalty-bearing protease inhibitor product start at zero for purposes of calculating the tiered royalties on a product-by-product basis. The following table details the royalty tiers associated with cumulative calendar year net sales allocated to each royalty-bearing product as provided in the AbbVie Agreement:

 

Calendar Year Net Sales

 

Royalty Tier

 

(in thousands)

 

(%)

 

up to $500,000

 

10%

 

from $500,000 up to $750,000

 

12%

 

from $750,000 up to $1,000,000

 

14%

 

from $1,000,000 up to $2,500,000

 

17%

 

greater than or equal to $2,500,000

 

20%

 

 

 

Royalties owed to the Company under the agreement can be reduced by AbbVie in certain circumstances, including (i) if AbbVie exercises its right to license or otherwise acquire rights to intellectual property controlled by a third party where a product could not be legally developed or commercialized in a country without the third-party intellectual property right, (ii) where a product developed under the collaboration agreement is sold in a country and not covered by a valid patent claim in such country, and (iii) where sales of a generic product are equal to at least a specified percentage of AbbVie’s market share of its product in a country.

AbbVie’s obligation to pay royalties on a product developed under the agreement expires on a country-by-country basis upon the later of (i) the date of expiration of the last of the licensed patents with a valid claim covering the product in the applicable country, or (ii) ten years after the first commercial sale of the product in the applicable country.

Subject to certain exceptions, a party’s rights and obligations under the agreement continue until (i) such time as AbbVie is no longer developing a product candidate or (ii) if, as of the time AbbVie is no longer developing any product candidates, AbbVie is commercializing any other protease inhibitor product, such time as all royalty terms for all covered products have ended. Accordingly, the final expiration date of the agreement is currently indeterminable.

Either party may terminate the agreement for cause in the event of a material breach, subject to prior notice and the opportunity to cure, or in the event of the other party’s bankruptcy. Additionally, AbbVie may terminate the agreement for any reason upon specified prior notice.

If the Company terminates the agreement for cause or AbbVie terminates without cause, any licenses and other rights granted to AbbVie will terminate and AbbVie will be deemed to have granted the Company (i) a non-exclusive, perpetual, fully-paid, worldwide, royalty-free license, with the right to sublicense, under AbbVie’s intellectual property used in any product candidate, and (ii) an exclusive (even as to AbbVie), perpetual, fully-paid, worldwide, royalty-free license, with the right to sublicense, under AbbVie’s interest in any joint intellectual property rights to develop product candidates resulting from covered compounds and to commercialize any products derived from such compounds. Upon the Company’s request, AbbVie will also transfer to the Company all right, title and interest in any related product trademarks, regulatory filings and clinical trials.

If AbbVie terminates the agreement for the Company’s uncured breach, the milestone and royalty payments payable by AbbVie may be reduced, the licenses granted to AbbVie will remain in place, the Company will be deemed to have granted AbbVie an exclusive license under the Company’s interest in joint intellectual property, AbbVie will continue to have the right to commercialize any covered products, and all rights and licenses granted to the Company by AbbVie will terminate.