LIGAND TO PAY LILLY $20 MILLION FOR REMOVING ONTAK '05 ROYALTIES

Ligand Pharmaceuticals exercised the first option to buy down a portion of the royalties payable to Eli Lilly on sales of Ligand's U.S. marketed cancer drug, Ontak. In a press release, Ligand said it will make a one-time cash payment of $20 million to Lilly in exchange for elimination of the Ontak royalties due to Lilly on net sales in the U.S. in 2005 and a reduced reverse-tiered royalty scale on net sales in the U.S. thereafter above a certain threshold.

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