Kyle Hoellger
Oct 3, 2013
Merck Feels the Pain as More Patents Expire
New Jersey based Merck & Co., Inc. is planning to lay off another 8,500 employees as it braces for some key patents to expire in the next few years. Pharmaceutical companies have been losing exclusivity on a number of patents ever since the "patent cliff" of 2012 and the loss of a drug patent such as Singulair can represent a major revenue drag. Through a series of restructuring moves Merck hopes to save about $2.5B a year by the end of 2015.