Wyeth, King reach truce on Altace

Philadelphia Inquirer, The, July, 2006 by Thomas Ginsberg

Wyeth said yesterday that its pharmaceutical division would stop marketing and selling King Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s heart drug Altace next year, ending nearly two years of disputes over their co-promotion partnership.

Wyeth, based in Madison, N.J., with pharmaceutical operations in Collegeville, had agreed in 2000 to work with King, based in Bristol, Tenn., on marketing and promotion of the drug in exchange for a share of its revenue.

But in September 2004, Wyeth sued King, seeking about $8.9 million for an alleged breach of their agreement, Wyeth said in its 2005 annual report. King denied the allegations, and last December it in turn accused Wyeth of defaulting on their agreement.

In January, the sides entered discussions on "commercial issues" around...