ALK and bioCSL have entered into a long-term partnership covering three ALK products in Australia and New Zealand. The agreement grants bioCSL exclusive rights in Australia and New Zealand to ALK’s sublingual allergy immunotherapy tablets (SLIT-tablets) for house dust mite (HDM) allergy and grass pollen allergy (marketed as Grazax in Europe and Grastek in North America), and its adrenaline auto-injector, Jext. ALK will be responsible for product supply and bioCSL will undertake registration and commercialization of the products.

bioCSL is part of the CSL Group, headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. The CSL Group includes CSL Behring, CSL Plasma and bioCSL. bioCSL markets a comprehensive range of vaccines and pharmaceutical products.

ALK is a research-driven global pharmaceutical company focusing on allergy prevention, diagnosis and treatment headquartered in Hørsholm, Denmark. ALK has entered into partnership agreements with Merck and Torii to commercialize sublingual allergy immunotherapy tablets in North America and Japan, respectively.

Allergic rhinitis is one of the most common respiratory illnesses in Australia and affects approximately 18% of the population. Furthermore, it frequently coexists with other allergic conditions such as asthma and sinusitis. The disease can affect many aspects of life such as sleep, social and leisure activities, work and general day-to-day functioning.

ALK will receive a minor upfront payment of an undisclosed amount, followed by a milestone payment upon approval of the HDM SLIT-tablet in Australia. ALK will sell products to bioCSL at a pre-agreed price structure ensuring a certain split of the final in-market revenues generated by bioCSL.

The partnership with bioCSL advances ALK’s strategy to broaden its geographical presence through partnerships, acquisitions or by establishing its own affiliates. The announcement does not impact ALK’s financial guidance for 2015.