Transcept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: TSPT) today announced plans to reduce operating expenses by eliminating certain staff positions following its recently announced License and Collaboration Agreement with Purdue Pharmaceutical Products to commercialize Intermezzo((R) )(zolpidem tartrate sublingual tablet) in the United States.
Glenn A. Oclassen, President and Chief Executive Officer commented, "Our overall staffing needs have been modified by the development of Intermezzo((R)) to the point of NDA submission and our recently announced agreement with Purdue Pharmaceuticals to commercialize Intermezzo((R)) in the United States. Should Purdue elect to continue with our license and collaboration agreement after an FDA approval of Intermezzo((R)), Purdue will be responsible for the effort and costs associated with the commercialization of the product in the United States, including sales and marketing efforts in the primary care market, post-approval regulatory affairs activities and commitments, and product manufacturing. We are therefore phasing out certain positions that have been rendered non-essential by our development success to date and our agreement with Purdue. We believe that this important cost containment step is consistent with our long standing principle of conservative cash management."