B-MS will not raise bid for ImClone

US drug major Bristol-myers Squibb has said that it will not raise its previous offer of $60 share for the remaining 83% of ImClone, from which it licenses the cancer drug Erbitux (cetuximab; Marketletters passim).

Following the rejection of the price as inadequate and claims of a counter bid at $70 per share, B-MS has released a letter sent to ImClone chairman Carl Icahn by chief executive James Cornelius saying it was disappointed that the firm had "unilaterally rejected our offer without discussing its merits with us and our advisors." The CEO also pointed out that B-MS holds the exclusive, long-term marketing rights in the USA to Erbitux and related compounds, including IMC-11F8, and "has no intention of agreeing to any modifications to these rights."

The drug major also said it had no intention of agreeing to any changes to its long-term marketing rights to Erbitux, the cancer drug that is ImClone's lone product on the market. B-MS markets Erbitux in the USA and receives around 61%of the drug's North American revenue. In Europe, the cancer agent is marketed by Germany's Merck KGaA, which some observers have said may be the mystery higher bidder.