McNEIL ACQUIRES TWO PENHWALT CONTROLLED-RELEASE OTC PRODUCTSfor

Executive Summary

McNEIL ACQUIRES TWO PENHWALT CONTROLLED-RELEASE OTC PRODUCTSfor "cash and royalties," according to a July 2 press release. The two -- - Delsym, a non-narcotic antitussive introduced in 1982 and Corsym, a nasal decongestant antihistamine introduced in 1984 -- - both employ Pennwalt's patented Pennkinetic liquid, controlled-release drug delivery system. The release notes that Pennwait initially will manufacture the products for McNeil Consumer Products. "Under the terms of the agreement," it states, "Pennwalt will retain its patent for the Pennkinetic system and will continue to develop and introduce new Pennkinetic products under its own label." The agreement will allow Pennwalt to focus its efforts on drug research. In addition, the products could potentially benefit from McNeil's greater consumer marketing resources. Corsym and Delsym will broaden McNeil's Tylenol-based product line into the cough/cold area. McNeil also markets a sinus headache product, Sine-Aid. Pennwalt Chairman and CEO Edwin Tuttle stated in the press release that "income from this agreement will enable us to make an even greater commitment to research in the pharmaceutical division." Pennwalt has a number of other products formulated with the Pennkinetic system at the NDA review stage at FDA. Last year, Pennwalt said at that time it was projecting that 15 Pennkinetic NDAs would be filed over a 5-year period. The OTC controlled release liquid concept has apparently been a difficult sell. Robins recently decided to drop its Extend 12 antitussive, a product licensed from Pennwalt. Announcing its decision, Robins said that "consumers have yet to fully accept this product's unique delivery system."