6. Collaborative Arrangements and Licensing Agreements

Below, we have included our collaborations with substantive changes during the first three months of 2017 from those included in Note 6 of our audited financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.

Strategic Partnership

Biogen

We have several strategic collaborations with Biogen focused on using antisense technology to advance the treatment of neurological disorders. These collaborations combine our expertise in creating antisense drugs with Biogen's expertise in developing therapies for neurological disorders. We developed and licensed to Biogen SPINRAZA, our approved drug to treat pediatric and adult patients with SMA. Additionally, we and Biogen are currently developing four other drugs to treat neurodegenerative diseases under these collaborations, including IONIS-SOD1_Rx, IONIS-MAPT_Rx(formerly IONIS-BIIB4_Rx)and two drugs to treat undisclosed neurodegenerative diseases,IONIS-BIIB5_Rx and IONIS-BIIB6_Rx. In addition to these drugs, we and Biogen are evaluating numerous additional targets to develop drugs to treat neurological diseases. From inception through March 2017, we have received over $550 million from our Biogen collaborations.

During the three months ended March 31, 2017, we earned revenue of $20.4 million from our relationship with Biogen, including $5 million we earned in the first quarter of 2017 for validation of an undisclosed neurological disease target and SPINRAZA royalties. Our revenue from Biogen represented 18 percent of our total revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2017. In comparison, we earned revenue of $21.3 million for the same period in 2016, which represented 58 percent of our total revenue for that period. Our condensed consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2017 included deferred revenue of $57.7 million related to our relationship with Biogen.

Research, Development and Commercialization Partners

Bayer

In May 2015, we entered into an exclusive license agreement with Bayer to develop and commercialize IONIS-FXI_Rx for the prevention of thrombosis. We were responsible for completing a Phase 2 study of IONIS-FXI_Rx in patients with end-stage renal disease on hemodialysis. Under the terms of the agreement, we received a $100 million upfront payment in the second quarter of 2015. We recorded revenue of $91.2 million related to the license for IONIS-FXI_Rx in June 2015 and we recognized the majority of the remaining amount related to development activities for IONIS-FXI_Rxthrough November 2016.

In February 2017, we amended our agreement with Bayer to advance IONIS-FXI_Rx and to initiate development of IONIS-FXI-L_Rx, which Bayer licensed. In conjunction with the decision to advance these programs, we received a $75 million payment from Bayer in April 2017. We recorded revenue of $64.9 million related to the license for IONIS-FXI-L_Rx in February 2017 and we are recognizing the remaining amount over the period we are performing the ongoing development activities for IONIS-FXI-L_Rx and IONIS-FXI_Rx through May 2019. We plan to conduct a Phase 2b study evaluating IONIS-FXI_Rx in patients with end-stage renal disease on hemodialysis to finalize dose selection. Additionally, we plan to rapidly develop IONIS-FXI-L_Rx through Phase 1. Following these studies and Bayer's decision to further advance these programs, Bayer will be responsible for all global development, regulatory and commercialization activities for both drugs. We are eligible to receive additional milestone payments as each drug advances toward the market. In total over the term of our collaboration, we are eligible to receive up to $385 million in license fees, substantive milestone payments and other payments, including up to $125 million for the achievement of development milestones and up to $110 million for the achievement of commercialization milestones. In addition, we are eligible to receive tiered royalties in the low to high 20 percent range on gross margins of both drugs combined. We will earn the next milestone payment of $10 million if we advance a program under this collaboration.

During the three months ended March 31, 2017, we earned revenue of $65.5 million from our relationship with Bayer, which represented 59 percent of our total revenue for that period. In comparison, we earned revenue of $1.3 million for the same period in 2016, which represented three percent of our total revenue for that period. Our condensed consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2017 included no deferred revenue related to our relationship with Bayer because we received the $75 million payment in April 2017.

Novartis

In January 2017, we and Akcea initiated a collaboration with Novartis to develop and commercialize AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx and AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx.Under the collaboration agreement, Novartis has an exclusive option to develop and commercialize AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx and AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx. Akcea is responsible for completing a Phase 2 program, conducting an end-of-Phase 2 meeting with the FDA and providing API for each drug. If Novartis exercises an option for one of these drugs, Novartis will be responsible for all further global development, regulatory and commercialization activities for such drug.

Akcea received a $75 million upfront payment in the first quarter of 2017, of which it will retain $60 million and will pay us $15 million as a sublicense fee. If Novartis exercises its option for a drug, Novartis will pay Akcea a license fee equal to $150 million for each drug it licenses. In addition, for AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx, Akcea is eligible to receive up to $600 million in substantive milestone payments, including $25 million for the achievement of a development milestone, up to $290 million for the achievement of regulatory milestones and up to $285 million for the achievement of commercialization milestones. In addition, for AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx, Akcea is eligible to receive up to $530 million in substantive milestone payments, including $25 million for the achievement of a development milestone, up to $240 million for the achievement of regulatory milestones and up to $265 million for the achievement of commercialization milestones. Akcea plans to co-commercialize any licensed drug commercialized by Novartis in selected markets, under terms and conditions that it plans to negotiate with Novartis in the future, through the specialized sales force Akcea is building to commercialize volanesorsen. Following Novartis’ exercise of its option for either drug, Akcea will earn the next milestone payment of $25 million if Novartis advances the Phase 3 study for either drug. Akcea is also eligible to receive tiered royalties in the mid-teens to low 20 percent range on net sales of AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx and AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx. Akcea will pay 50 percent of these license fees, milestone payments and royalties to us as a sublicense fee.

The agreement with Novartis will continue until the earlier of the date that all of Novartis’ options to obtain the exclusive licenses under the agreement expire unexercised or, if Novartis exercises its options, until the expiration of all payment obligations under the agreement. In addition, the agreement as a whole or with respect to any drug under the agreement, may terminate early under the following situations:

●

Novartis may terminate the agreement as a whole or with respect to any drug at any time by providing written notice to us;

●

Either we or Novartis may terminate the agreement with respect to any drug by providing written notice to the other party in good faith that we or Novartis has determined that the continued development or commercialization of the drug presents safety concerns that pose an unacceptable risk or threat of harm in humans or would violate any applicable law, ethical principles, or principles of scientific integrity;

●

Either we or Novartis may terminate the agreement for a drug by providing written notice to the other party upon the other party’s uncured failure to perform a material obligation related to the drug under the agreement, or the entire agreement if the other party becomes insolvent; and

●

We may terminate the agreement if Novartis disputes or assists a third party to dispute the validity of any of our patents.

In conjunction with this collaboration, we and Akcea entered into a SPA with Novartis. As part of the SPA, Novartis purchased 1.6 million shares of our common stock for $100 million in the first quarter of 2017. Additionally, the SPA requires Novartis to purchase an additional $50 million of common stock in the future. Subject to the terms of the SPA, Novartis will make this purchase either in Akcea’s common stock at the IPO price if an IPO occurs under certain conditions, in our common stock at a premium if an IPO does not occur by April 2018, or in a combination of both of these under certain conditions. If an IPO does not occur within the required timeframe, Novartis is required to purchase our common stock at a premium calculated in the same manner as Novartis' initial investment.

To determine the amount of revenue to recognize under our agreements with Novartis, we first concluded that we would account for the collaboration and SPA agreements as a single multiple element arrangement. We next identified four separate units of accounting under the arrangement, each with stand-alone value.:

●

Development services for AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx;

●

Development services for AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx;

●

API for AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx; and

●

API for AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx.

We then determined the total consideration under the arrangement was $180.0 million, which included the following:

●

$75 million from the upfront payment;

●

$100 million our common stock Novartis purchased under the SPA, including $28.4 million for the premium paid by Novartis for its purchase of our common stock at a premium in the first quarter of 2017; and

●

$5.0 million for the potential premium Novartis will pay if they purchase our common stock in the future.

We first allocated $71.6 million of the consideration to equity based on the fair value of our common stock Novartis purchased. Next, we allocated the remaining consideration of $108.4 million based on the relative stand-alone selling price of each unit of accounting as follows:

●

$64.0 million for the development services for AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx;

●

$40.1 million for the development services for AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx;

●

$1.5 million for the delivery of AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx API; and

●

$2.8 million for the delivery of AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx API.

We are recognizing the amount attributed to the development services for AKCEA-APO(a)-L_Rx and AKCEA-APOCIII-L_Rx over the period of time we are performing the services, currently estimated to be through August 2018 and May 2019, respectively. We will recognize the amount attributed to the API supply as we deliver it to Novartis. We determined at the inception that all milestones under its Novartis collaboration are substantive milestones and we will recognize any future exercise of an option to license a drug under the Novartis agreement in full in the period the option is exercised. Akcea is responsible for the development activities under this collaboration. As such, Akcea is recognizing the associated revenue in its statement of operations. Akcea pays us sublicense fees for payments that it receives under the collaboration and we recognize those fees as revenue and Akcea recognizes the fees as R&D expense. On a consolidated basis, the sublicense fees are eliminated.

During the three months ended March 31, 2017, we earned revenue of $9.6 million from our relationship with Novartis. Our condensed consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2017 included deferred revenue of $98.8 million related to our relationship with Novartis.