Selling to the Franchise Market

From its inception, Triangle pursued a strategy of building a broad portfolio of antiviral drugs through in-licensing, with the goal of bringing drug candidates through later stage clinical trials and then partnering the entire deal package with a single partner. Triangle's June 1999 deal with Abbott was just such a deal. The agreement, which involves 2 Abbott drugs and 4 Triangle compounds may provide Abbott with franchises in HIV & HBV. Triangle meanwhile stands to reap up to $335 million. For the industry as a whole, the deal suggests that there may be increased opportunities for biotechs to make lucrative deals for niche products, particularly when they can offer a portfolio that will help its partner build a franchise.