Shire's proposed $1.6 billion cash takeover of TKT answers investors' call for some deal-making action and pipeline diversification. But critics say Shire has paid over the odds for some risky programs in unfamiliar territory--rather like it did with BioChem.

After a fervent US expanstion capped by the surprise $150 million licensing of Indevus OAB treatment Sanctura, proprietary ambitions at the Croatian generics play Pliva may be stalling. Sanctura sales have disappointed, illustrating again the challenges of taking a specialist approach to primary care marketing. Pliva's best bet may be to switch growth engines to its promising biogenerics portfolio.

Progress on biogenerics inches along, as evidenced by deal between Barr Pharmaceuticals and PLIVA giving Barr rights to market Pliva's version of G-CSF in North America, and by the recent well-attended FDA workshop on follow-on proteins (FOPs). Barr/PlLIVA, the first company/company deal in this field in months indicates that companies still see opportunity despite last year's regulatory setbacks. The FDA workshop, while far from conclusive, hinted at a softening of positions by both opponents and proponents of biogenerics; at least they're talking the same language.