Penn Sues BioNTech for Unpaid Covid-Vaccine Patent Royalties (1)

BioNTech SE owes the University of Pennsylvania royalties a greater share of its Covid-19 vaccine’s $75 billion in global sales, according to a lawsuit alleging underpayment for patents covering mRNA technology crucial for Comirnaty.

The complaint, filed Monday in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, redacts “confidential and highly sensitive terms” of Penn’s non-exclusive July 2017 sublicense with BioNTech, and of Penn’s licenses with mRNA RiboTherapeutics Inc. and Cellscript LLC. Cellscript sublicensed Penn’s technology to BioNTech and Moderna Inc., which makes a rival Covid shot called Spikevax.

Penn alleges that BioNTech “is paying royalties ...