Pfizer Patent Suit Could Make Elan Bapineuzamab Talks Go a Whole Lot Easier

(MoneyWatch)  Could a patent infringement case filed against Pfizer just before the holiday help Elan CEO Kelly Martin in his negotiations with Wyeth over revenues from bapineuzamab, his Alzheimer's drug? The commercialization of bapi will be "complicated," Martin said, given Johnson & Johnson's recent deal for a stake in them and Wyeth's previous agreement on the same.

The Alzheimer's Institute of America sued Pfizer June 30, claiming that its patents on a "wide range of Alzheimer's Disease-related technology" are being infringed by Pfizer in its Alzheimer's pipeline.

If the AIA prevails and disables Pfizer's ownership of its Alzheimer's technologies, then its stake in Elan's bapi (via its acquisition of Wyeth) will suddenly become a whole lot more valuable to Pfizer. That may make Pfizer/Wyeth a lot more amenable as Elan and J&J negotiate over splitting the income from any commercialization of bapi with Wyeth. BNET noted -- via In Vivo -- that Elan and Wyeth currently have no commercialization agreement on bapi, even though everyone agrees it will be a blockbuster if it gets approved.

In the Pfizer suit, AIA claims it has a smoking gun: A 2003 letter from Pfizer claiming the company inspected its Alzheimer's properties and then said, "No thanks."

Recently, AIA, claims, those same technologies showed up in plagiarized form in Pfizer's pipeline. Might a potential negative result in the suit make Pfizer/Wyeth think twice about making heavy-handed threats in its talks with Elan and J&J?

BNET predicts the eventual announcement of an arrangement that will enrich and reward all parties ...

• Previous BNET coverage of Elan:
• In Elan-J&J Deal, Many Unanswered Questions (Wyeth Being One)
• If Novartis Buys Elan's Tysabri and MS Drug, There Won't Be Much Elan Left
• Elan-Pfizer Deal Rumor Is Deja Vu All Over Again
• Elan Stock Keeps Rising Despite Denial of BMS Takeover
• Elan Silent on Corporate Jets as 230 Are Laid Off
• Elan Management Creates Self-Enrichment Plan as Pfizer-Wyeth Deal Threatens Bapineuzumab
• Elan Chairman: "We're Qualified Managers Because We're Irish"
• Elan Sees Problems on Alzheimer's Drug; Puts Itself Up for Sale