The Year in Review: The Deals and Trends of 2006

In the first PharmaVentures Business Review of 2007, we take a retrospective look across 2006. We review a number of the key deals and transactions from 2006 and what they have meant for the companies involved. In The Business Report we investigate some of the trends in deal making for 2006, putting them into the context of deal making across the last 10 years of industry activity. We also review biotech IPO performance in 2006 and discuss some of the key industry drivers over the year. In Face-to-Face, Fintan Walton talks to Rob Wills, VP Alliance Management, Pharmaceuticals Group, Johnson & Johnson about meeting the challenges of alliance management and ensuring success in partnerships.

The Year in Review

In contrast to our usual round-up of deals from the previous month, we take a look back across the whole of 2006 at some of the major transactions to have hit the headlines. 

The deals covered are:

To learn more about the major deals and transactions from the previous month’s industry activity, you should view PharmaDeals Intelligence bank, a comprehensive and global source of deals information. With financial information, news alerts and legal agreements, this searchable resource, which is compiled by analysts and consultants, is an essential deal making tool.

• GlaxoSmithKline's deal with Sirna Therapeutics
• AstraZeneca's billion-dollar acquisition of Cambridge Antibody Technology (CAT)
• Genentech's and Inotek Pharmaceuticals' collaboration to discover new cancer drugs
• GlaxoSmithKline's US$1.5635 B drug discovery alliance with ChemoCentryx to develop a portfolio of products to treat inflammatory disorders
• AstraZeneca's US$700 M deal with Royalty Pharma for the Humira™ royalty stream
• Merck's US$1.1 B acquisition of RNAi biotech company Sirna Therapeutics
• Genentech's plan to acquire Tanox for US$919 M
• GlaxoSmithKline's record-breaking billion-dollar deal with Genmab

The Business Report

In the Business Report this month, we identify some of the deal making trends from 2006, including changes in overall deal number and shifts in both the frequency and value of licensing deals in relation to products at different stages of the developmental process. We also review the performance of some of the major biotech IPO markets over the past year and overview the key industry drivers of 2006.

Face-to-Face

Fintan Walton talks to Rob Wills, VP Alliance Management, Pharmaceuticals Group, Johnson & Johnson, about the development of the Alliance Management group since its establishment in 2001. Rob outlines the need for superior capabilities in this area of the business in order to cope with increases in deal complexity in recent years.

They ask the important question ‘What isn't alliance management?' and discuss the use of metrics for determining alliance success. Rob also outlines the expectations that Johnson & Johnson have from potential partners in terms of committing resources to the alliance management process and reveals what triggers the alliance management team to become involved in the negotiation process.