Beckman Coulter said that it will seek court action to allow it to directly sell a natriuretic peptide assay that is currently exclusively marketed by Quidel as a result of its recent agreement with Alere.
Quidel exclusively markets the assay, while it was developed and manufactured by Beckman Coulter.
The agreement allowed Quidel to develop, produce and supply BNP assay for the diagnosis of cardiac disease (heart failure)
Quidel said that it views Beckman’s claims as meritless and in opposition to Beckman’s long-standing strategy of honoring the supply agreement with its previous partners Alere and Biosite over the last 14 years.
Recently, Quidel’s board of directors rejected Beckman’s parent company Danaher’s offers to acquire the BNP assay business.
In October, Quidel purchased certain assets and rights from Alere, which have been sold as part of Abbott’s acquisition of Alere.
Under the supply agreement, which Alere purchased from Biosite and Quidel acquired from Alere, Quidel offers to Beckman certain proprietary antibodies(developed under a license with Scios).
Beckman produces and sells the assays to Quidel, which in turn sells the assays to customers for use on Beckman analyzers.
Beckman Coulter noted that it requested Diego courts in California to clarify and enforce its rights to sell a natriuretic peptide assay directly to its customers.
Image: Quidel has entered into commercial dispute with Quidel to sell BNP directly to the customers. Photo: courtesy of ponsulak / FreeDigitalPhotos.net.