Thanks Mike,

But why are CBS going after Schinazi so hard?

Because he once worked for the VA?

Or is it because he made $400M when Pharmasset was sold to Gilead for $7Bn? If Schinazi got $400M out of the deal, it makes him only a 5% share-holder in Pharmasset. Scarcely a position of power, and certainly not in a position where he have any say in the matter. After all, it is Gilead who are doing all the price-gouging … to the tune of $21Bn per year on Sovaldi alone…

At first sight, it seems to me like CBS are missing the real culprit… What are they afraid of?

On the other hand, maybe the fact the Schinazi worked for the VA is ultimately the best way to attack patent and pricing issues. If Schinazi worked for the VA, then the VA should get a fair percentage of the rights to any intellectual property (IP) he generates.

In the UK and most of europe, it is quite normal for a university researcher to be obliged to hand over to his employer ALL the intellectual property that he might produce – usually in return for a gratuity of 30% (say) of any eventual commercial success that might arise.

In the UK at least, if Schinazi was also working for an outside company (i.e. Pharmasset), he should have declared this to his employer (i.e. the VA), and cut a deal. And if he didn’t, he was most probably in breach of his contract with the VA. Either way, on this basis, the VA should have a rightful claim on a good percentage on Schinazi’s IP. In short, the VA should own most of the rights to Sofosbuvir, and could potentially file a massive claim against Gilead…

Go VA!!