Has Acclarent Been Banished from the Ethicon/Johnson & Johnson Empire?
UPDATED CafePharma Response (below)
August 21, 2014
It’s been shown here time and time again, that when a company does something wrong they will often change their name to distance themselves from unethical or illegal behavior which is a characteristic of The Sociopathic Business Model™. Once made aware of the characteristics it becomes easier to predict patterns of companies. As a refresher:
On the popular the anonymous message board CafePharma the company Acclarent (a venture capital funded startup sinus device company) purchased by Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon in January 2010 for $785 million according to the Wall St. Journal was, up until last week, under the Ethicon heading on the board made popular by reps and disgruntled former employees.
Inexplicably the Acclarent board moved out from under Ethicon (a division of Johnson & Johnson) and under its own company heading.
It’s also interesting to note that Acclarent has less than 500 employees but the thread on the board has been viewed more than 353,559 times since the start in 2010. Who could possibly be looking at this company? What could possibly make this little company that sold for hundreds of millions to the largest producer of consumer and medical products in the World so interesting? Time will tell; and, if fact based evidence over time is any indication of the future The Wall Street Journal will be the only major news outlet covering any story about Johnson & Johnson and their subsidiaries. I’ll reach out to both CafePharma and the Wall St. Journal for comment.
Hal Jalikeakik
Acclarent is division of Johnson and Johnson. Acclarent has never been a subdivision of Ethicon (Ethicon Suture, Ethicon Energy, etc). The glib, discontent, and curious may find the Cafe Pharma web blog a barometer of business culture but not comic activity. You seem to be missing that another balloon company is paying millions and millions of dollars each month and year as a royalty. Think Cordis. How many cardiac stent companies also pay millions and millions in royalties to J&J. Jump in for the win. J&J is a “Patent Estate”. A model of success that is in itself an American Treasure. Your choice, be a big fish in your own pond or learn to swim in the deep end of the ocean.
The strategy is not unique. The execution may be flawed but the cash flow is strong and is simply a license to print money.
Cafe Pharma is so passed it’s prime. Medtech(y) is the real Blog for MD&D
Melayna Lokosky
Hal-As a former Acclarent employee who was present during the merger when Gary Pruden attended the National Sales Meeting in Phoenix to announce the sale I can assure you Acclarent was a division of Ethicon. Johnson & Johnson has a pathological history of trying to re-write the past by renaming factions of their organization to distance from crimes and unethical behavior.
From the press release from the WSJ:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703581204574600681959562054
J &J didn’t release any financial information on much smaller Acclarent. J&J’s surgical product-making subsidiary, Ethicon, will acquire Acclarent, which has about 325 employees and will keep its headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif.
As for the other balloon company you refer to I find it interesting that case ever held up in court considering:
2006 Acclarent was sued for patent infringement on the balloon technology (Settled out of court paying Quest Medical an undisclosed amount-yep that’s still fraud).
2010 Acclarent sold to Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon in 2010 for $785 million and with all that new money became the biggest bully on the block.
2010 Acclarent turned around and sued Entellus for patent infringement on the balloon Acclarent stole from Quest Medical but making sure they added to the patent no other device of its kind could enter through the nose (or natural orifice). Unreal, right? Acclarent steals the technology, learns how to lock down the patent (make a small but significant change to the patent) and turns around and sues their competition with Johnson & Johnson money.
Here’s the tricky part so stay with me- Acclarent said that the balloon was ‘just another tool in an ENT’s surgical bag,” in order to gain insurance coverage. There are lots of tools in ENT’s bags and 99% of them enter through the nose and would not be able to obtain a patent including royalties paid if the device enters through a natural orifice. It can’t be both “another tool” and then turn around say that no other device similar can go through the nose. That’s inconsistent and contradictory language to action and a trigger of The Sociopathic Business Model™.
The execution, as you say, is more than flawed it is fraud. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Anonymous
Get a friggin clue. This line of logic demonstrates again why Acclarent was right to fire you. As JS always said “”hireith no assholeith”.
Melayna Lokosky
Yes my logic (coupled with ethics and the law) as you’ve correctly pointed out is why I was fired (wrongfully terminated). Erring on the side of the law does appear to be conflict of interest for Acclarent’s/Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon’s many frauds. But please feel free to grow a pair and use your real name.