Note 1 - Company Overview	9 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2013
Nature of Operations [Text Block]	(1) Company Overview Biota Pharmaceuticals, Inc., together with its wholly owned subsidiaries (“Biota”, or the “Company”) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative anti-infective products to prevent and treat serious and potentially life-threatening infectious diseases. The Company has been incorporated in the state of Delaware since 1969 and the corporate headquarters are located in Alpharetta, Georgia. On November 8, 2012, Nabi Biopharmaceuticals (“Nabi”) merged with Biota Holdings Limited and the resulting company was renamed Biota Pharmaceuticals, Inc. The Company is currently focused on developing oral, small molecule compounds to treat a number of infections, with its clinical-stage programs being directed toward respiratory diseases, including those caused by influenza A and B, and human rhinovirus (“HRV”). In addition, it has preclinical research programs directed toward developing products to treat respiratory syncytial virus (“RSV”) as well as a broad spectrum of gram negative bacterial infections. The Company has developed a neuraminidase inhibitor, zanamivir, which is marketed worldwide by GlaxoSmithKline (“GSK”) as Relenza™ for the prevention and treatment of influenza pursuant to a research and license agreement entered into with the Company in 1990. In addition, the Company has cross-licensed intellectual property related to second-generation long-acting neuraminidase inhibitors (“LANI”) with Daiichi Sankyo Company Ltd (“Daiichi Sankyo”), of which the lead product, laninamivir octanoate, was developed and is being marketed by Daiichi Sankyo as lnavir® Dry Powder Inhaler (“Inavir®”) in Japan for the treatment of influenza A & B infections. The Company has filed an Investigational New Drug application (“IND”) with the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) to develop laninamivir octanoate, and in 2011 entered into a contract with the U.S. Office of Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (“BARDA”) designed to provide up to $231 million for the completion of clinical development and United States (“U.S.”) based manufacturing of laninamivir octanoate for the treatment of influenza A and B infections. Although the Company’s influenza products have been successfully commercialized by other larger pharmaceutical companies under license agreements, the Company has not received regulatory approval for any product candidates it has developed independently, and does not have any commercial capabilities. Therefore, it is possible that the Company may not successfully derive any significant product revenues from any of its existing or future product candidates.

Note 1 - Company Overview

9 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2013

(1) Company Overview

Biota Pharmaceuticals, Inc., together with its wholly owned subsidiaries (“Biota”, or the “Company”) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative anti-infective products to prevent and treat serious and potentially life-threatening infectious diseases. The Company has been incorporated in the state of Delaware since 1969 and the corporate headquarters are located in Alpharetta, Georgia. On November 8, 2012, Nabi Biopharmaceuticals (“Nabi”) merged with Biota Holdings Limited and the resulting company was renamed Biota Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

The Company is currently focused on developing oral, small molecule compounds to treat a number of infections, with its clinical-stage programs being directed toward respiratory diseases, including those caused by influenza A and B, and human rhinovirus (“HRV”). In addition, it has preclinical research programs directed toward developing products to treat respiratory syncytial virus (“RSV”) as well as a broad spectrum of gram negative bacterial infections.

The Company has developed a neuraminidase inhibitor, zanamivir, which is marketed worldwide by GlaxoSmithKline (“GSK”) as Relenza™ for the prevention and treatment of influenza pursuant to a research and license agreement entered into with the Company in 1990. In addition, the Company has cross-licensed intellectual property related to second-generation long-acting neuraminidase inhibitors (“LANI”) with Daiichi Sankyo Company Ltd (“Daiichi Sankyo”), of which the lead product, laninamivir octanoate, was developed and is being marketed by Daiichi Sankyo as lnavir® Dry Powder Inhaler (“Inavir®”) in Japan for the treatment of influenza A & B infections. The Company has filed an Investigational New Drug application (“IND”) with the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) to develop laninamivir octanoate, and in 2011 entered into a contract with the U.S. Office of Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (“BARDA”) designed to provide up to $231 million for the completion of clinical development and United States (“U.S.”) based manufacturing of laninamivir octanoate for the treatment of influenza A and B infections.

Although the Company’s influenza products have been successfully commercialized by other larger pharmaceutical companies under license agreements, the Company has not received regulatory approval for any product candidates it has developed independently, and does not have any commercial capabilities. Therefore, it is possible that the Company may not successfully derive any significant product revenues from any of its existing or future product candidates.