Will blockbuster contraception Mercilon find a new provider?

Alvogen·CKD, co-promotion contract for Mercilon set to expire

Pharmaceutical companies that show strength in OTC are considering sales rights agreements

Ranked No.1 in the field, with guaranteed annual sales of KRW 10 billion

Product photo of Mercilon

As Alvogen Korea and Chong Kun Dang's co-promotion contracts for oral birth control pills are set to expire, many pharmaceutical·distributors are sending love calls.

 

Sources said that distributors, including pharmaceutical companies with strength in over-the-counter drug sales, have visited Alvogen Korea and Chong Kun Dang to weigh considerations.

 

Alvogen and Chong Kun Dang signed a domestic distribution agreement for Mercilon in 2019.

 

Alvogen has been responsible for the approval·imports·marketing of the drug, and Chong Kun Dang has been responsible for pharmacy sales.

 

At the time, Alvogen chose Chong Kun Dang as the Korean partnership company for Mercilon because it had a variety of line-ups for female diseases and a nationwide pharmacy sales network.

 

Chong Kung Dang has a variety of OTC products for women, including the painkiller PENZAL, Prefemin for premenstrual symptoms, the anemia treatment Bolgre, and the prenatal nutritional supplement Gowoonzymemom.

 

As it is relates to the sales agreement, Alvogen and Chong Kun Dang are remaining silent about 'The termination due to contract maintenance·expiration.' There are opinions that, considering continued generation of sales, Chong Kun Dang may retain the sales rights.

 

Based on pharmaceutical sales performance, Mercilon generated KRW 2.97 billion until the first half of the year, ranking no.1 in the product line containing desogestrel·ethinyl estradiol.

 

Mercilon's exterior growth for 2020·2021·2022·2023 were KRW 7.6 billion·KRW6.9 billion·KRW6.9 billion·KRW7.2 billion.

 

However, if a company proposes conditions like dramatic sales growth, considerable commission reduction, or even taking over all the remaining stock (estimated at KRW 6 billion), another company may acquire the sales rights because Alvogen has nothing to lose.

 

Meanwhile, companies that are likely to get sales growth upon acquiring Mercilon sales right include Dongkook Pharmaceutical, Kwangdong Pharmaceutical, and ZP Therapeutics.

 

Dongkook Pharmaceutical launched the third-generation birth control pill in 2020, but it has not caused a significant shift in the market.

 

Kwangdong Pharmaceutical has Sunhana·Senselibe.

 

However, they have generated KRW 28 million and KRW 1.1 billion, respectively.

 

ZP Therapeutics acquired approval rights for Actinum in 2022, and the company has been actively pursuing sales and marketing.

 

Considering this situation, these pharmaceutical companies are guaranteed annual sales of about KRW 10 billion when they acquire the sales rights of Mercilon, which is close to blockbuster.

 

However, considering the co-promotion fee is 8-15%, the net gain may be lower than their in-house OTC sales.

 

Meanwhile, Mercilon has ranked No.1 in OTC oral birth control pills.

 

It shows contraceptive effects by combining the actions of ethinyl estradiol, estrogen, and desogestrel, progesterone.

 

The clinical trials for Mercilon have been completed in 12 European countries.

 

Mercilon is a global brand sold in 42 companies worldwide.