By Graham Ruddick Last Updated: 8:55PM BST 16 Apr 2009  GlaxoSmithKline's deal with Pfizer will see the companies share the risk of investing in research and development Photo: PA  The deal, unique in the industry in terms of scale and co-operation, involves 11 products with global sales of £1.6bn moving into a new company. GSK will hold 85pc of the equity and Pfizer 15pc.  Andrew Witty, GSK chief executive, called the formation of the business, which is yet to be named, a “milestone” for people living with HIV or Aids. The disease kills 5,000 people every day.  The partnership will see the companies share the risk of investing in research and development and for the process to become more efficient.  The agreement comes as drug companies face the growing threat of generic competition harming sales. Mr Witty has ruled out a mega-merger but insisted that GSK ends its reliance on discovering blockbuster drugs.  GSK and Pfizer believe their product portfolios and pipelines can combine successfully. GSK’s drugs to treat the illness include market-leading products nearing the end of patent protection, such as Combivir and Kivexa, which slow the effects of the HIV virus. Pfizer has Selzentry, a newer form of the treatment, and a respected pipeline.  Aids charities cautiously welcomed the deal with the International HIV/Aids Alliance saying any deal which could increase R&D resources was positive. However, Deborah Jack, the chief executive of the National Aids Trust, warned: “It is essential that reduced competition in the market does not drive up the price of HIV drugs.  “We would also ask for reassurance that the separation of HIV into a standalone company will not result in disinvestment in R&D in the longer term. HIV remains one of the most pressing health challenges globally and requires significant and sustained investment.”  Mr Witty said the deal “absolutely restates GSK’s ambition to be a leader in this field” following its high-profile breakthroughs in the late 1980s and 1990s.  He added: “To be blunt, I think one of the finest qualities of the pharmaceutical industry is the transformation of an incredibly frightening, infectious disease into something which is, to some large degree, manageable.  “There are many challenges around access and those are things we have to face up to, which I make no bones about, and I intend to continue to do that.” GSK said the joint venture would continue with not-for-profit pricing for those countries most in need.  The new £250m company will be based in London and should formally launch in the autumn. It will take 19pc of the global market share. This will be behind market leader Gilead, the fast-growing US group which has combined medicines into a single pill.  Dominique Limet, head of personalised medicine strategy at GSK, will lead the new HIV/Aids business with GSK’s chief financial officer, Julian Heslop, becoming chairman.  GSK, whose aid treatments are responsible for about 6pc of annual revenue, anticipates a 1pc to 2pc dilution in earnings per share in 2010 and 1pc in 2011 as a result of the deal, but it is targeting £60m in synergies with job cuts a possibility. Depending on the success of the six potential drugs in the new company’s pipeline, Pfizer could end up with a 30.5pc stake.  Shares in GSK remained stable yesterday, easing 11p to £10.35.
GlaxoSmithKline, the UK&rsquo;s largest pharmaceutical group, is to form an    unprecedented partnership with US rival Pfizer in an attempt to revitalise    the development of HIV and Aids treatments.