CureVac, GSK Secure $740 Million to End mRNA Patent Fight With BioNTech

CureVac and its development partner GSK have ended a three-year patent dispute with BioNTech and Pfizer over messenger-RNA vaccine technology, agreeing to a settlement that immediately pays the German and UK companies $740 million and grants them ongoing royalties on future vaccine sales in the United States. Under the deal, BioNTech will transfer $370 million to CureVac and $370 million to GSK. Pfizer will reimburse BioNTech for $80 million of the upfront sum and cover half of future U.S. royalty obligations tied specifically to COVID-19 vaccine sales. From 1 January 2025, CureVac and GSK will each receive low single-digit royalties—about 1%—on U.S. sales of BioNTech- and Pfizer-branded COVID-19, influenza and combination mRNA shots. If BioNTech completes its previously announced $1.25 billion all-stock acquisition of CureVac, expected by year-end 2025, GSK will collect an additional $130 million and the royalty stream will expand to sales outside the United States. The agreement also provides BioNTech and Pfizer a non-exclusive licence to make and sell mRNA-based COVID-19 and flu vaccines in the U.S. until the merger closes, after which the licence becomes global. The settlement averts a trial scheduled in Virginia and resolves related litigation in Germany, allowing BioNTech to focus resources on its cancer and infectious-disease pipeline. GSK said the pact does not affect its separate patent suits against BioNTech and Pfizer in other jurisdictions.