AeroGen, Becton Settle Contract Dispute

AeroGen Inc. settled a contract dispute with Becton Dickinson & Co. by paying $2 million for exclusive rights to patents for insulin inhalers.

AeroGen, which makes products to control the delivery of drugs to the lungs, sued Becton Dickinson in federal court in San Jose. The suit, filed in August, accused the medical-device maker of late deliveries of parts used in inhalers for diabetics.

Sunnyvale, Calif.-based AeroGen said Becton Dickinson agreed it has no rights to AeroGen’s patents or other intellectual property developed by either company for the products under the original contract. Becton Dickinson also won’t seek any royalties or other payments from a marketing agreement AeroGen plans to sign for the inhalers.

Becton Dickinson, based in Franklin Lakes, N.J., retains a royalty-free license for any intellectual property it solely developed outside the field of insulin inhalers.

Shares of AeroGen dropped $1.05 to close at $3.75 on Nasdaq. Becton Dickinson shares rose 35 cents to $37.05 on the NYSE.