SEOUL - Merck & Co. Inc. signed a co-promotion deal with Korea's Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. to sell Merck's Vytorin (ezetimibe/simvastatin) in Korea, adding to the companies' similar agreements for Fosamax (alendronate) and Januvia (sitagliptin), which have been sold in Korea since 2008.

Merck's Korea office, MSD Korea, has sold Vytorin in Korea since Korea FDA approval in July 2005.

"Details such as the division of sales districts and hospital territory will be hammered out, but the two companies will be basically jointly selling the product under the co-promotion deal," a MSD Korea official said.

MSD Korea relies on several Korean partners - including SK Chemicals and CJ Corporation - to co-promote Merck products.

Combined with Daewoong's strong in-country marketing and operational capacities with MSD's international reach, the two companies said they will be able to provide the cholesterol drug to patients faster through the synergy created by the co-promotion.

Daewoong, like many Korean pharma, is seeking wider alliances with global companies to survive a harsh business environment in Korea. Daewoong's partnerships, including Pfizer Inc. for pneumococcal vaccine Prevnar and Boehringer Ingelheim GMBH for constipation product Dulcolax (docusate) (Also see "South Korean Pharmas Clamber For Partnerships To Survive Rapidly Changing Environment" - Scrip, 15 June, 2010.).

Those moves to attract more global players have encouraged analysts views on the company despite the market challenges (Also see "Korean Analysts Retain Optimism For Daewoong Pharmaceutical On Early Pipeline and In-licensing" - Scrip, 14 February, 2011.).

"As original drug prescriptions are likely to increase due to stricter government regulations [including dual punishment laws for illegal rebates], Daewoong Pharm is expected to see strong sales growth momentum... more than that of its peers," Woori Investment & Securities said in a recent analyst note.

Woori analysts expect Daewoong to license additional drugs worth roughly KRW 50 billion ($47 million) in the second half of 2011.

"The company is pursuing top-line growth through licensing-in and co-promotion to ensure that sluggish domestic operations do not translate into meager sales growth...We positively view the company's efforts to balance its product line-up, including reducing its sales dependency on hypertension product Olmetec (olmesartan) [licensed from Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd]," Woori analysts said.

- Peter Chang (p.chang@elsevier.com)

Merck Turns Again To Daewoong For Co-promotion In South Korea

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