Item 1.01 Entry Into a Material Definitive Agreement.
On March 8, 2013, CyDex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("CyDex"), a wholly owned
subsidiary of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (together with CyDex,
collectively the "Company"), entered into a License Agreement (the "License
Agreement") with Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("Spectrum"). Under the License
Agreement, the Company granted to Spectrum an exclusive, nontransferable,
worldwide license to such intellectual property rights that will enable Spectrum
to develop and potentially commercialize Captisol-enabled® propylene glycol-free
melphalan. Additionally, the Company is entitled to receive a non-refundable
license issuance fee of $3 million and is eligible to receive over $50 million
in potential milestones. The Company is also eligible to receive significant
double-digit royalties on worldwide net sales of any products that are
successfully commercialized. The Agreement may be terminated by either party in
the event of an uncured material breach by the other party. Spectrum may
terminate the Agreement at any time on prior notice.
Contemporaneously with the entry into the License Agreement, the Company entered
into a Supply Agreement (the "Supply Agreement") to provide Captisol® to
Spectrum. Under the Supply Agreement, Spectrum agreed to purchase its Captisol
requirements for the development of the compound contemplated by the License
Agreement, as well as any Captisol required for any product that is successfully
commercialized.
Captisol is a patent protected, chemically modified cyclodextrin with a
structure designed to optimize the solubility and stability of drugs.
The foregoing summary of the material terms of both the License Agreement and
the Supply Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its
entirety by reference to the License Agreement and the Supply Agreement, copies
of which will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by Ligand on
its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2013.
Item 8.01. Other Events.
On March 14, 2013, Ligand issued a press release entitled "Ligand Signs Global
License Agreement with Spectrum Pharmaceuticals for Captisol-Enabled®
Melphalan."
A copy of the press release, dated March 14, 2013, is filed as Exhibit 99.1 to
this Current Report on Form 8-K and is incorporated by reference herein. The
contents of the press release are deemed to be filed for purposes of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
Exhibit No. Description
99.1 Press release dated March 14, 2013.