J&J, Google Joint Robotics Venture Approved By India's Fair Trade Body
By Jof Enriquez,
Follow me on Twitter @jofenriq
The Competitive Commission of India (CCI) has approved a proposed joint venture between medtech multinational Johnson & Johnson and tech giant Google to develop a surgical robotics platform.
India's fair trade regulator said it has cleared the "formation of a joint venture (Warren Robotics Inc.) between Johnson & Johnson, Ethicon — a medical device company that is part of J&J group — and Google, according to Money Control.
CCI enforces the Competition Act, enacted in 2002, which prohibits anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position by enterprises and regulates combinations (acquisition, acquiring of control and M&A), which cause or are likely to cause an appreciable adverse effect on competition within India, states the agency's website.
According to an official order issued by CCI, it received on June 5, 2015 a proposal from J&J, its subsidiary Ethicon, and Google, to form a joint venture to be called Warren Robotics Inc., which will primarily engage in R&D of surgical robotics. The agency says it twice required said parties to revise their proposal and submit additional information, and both times all parties complied.
Based on a review of facts and details in the amended proposal, CCI approved the deal, and stated in its decision that "the Commission is of the opinion that the proposed combination is not likely to have an appreciable adverse effect on competition in India."
According to CCI, Google will hold 70.1 percent equity of the joint venture, Johnson and Johnson Innovation (JJDC) will hold 23.1 percent equity, and Ethicon will hold the remaining 6.8 percent. Google and Ethicon will transfer certain assets, including intellectual property, to Warren Robotics, in accordance with existing regulations. Assets of the new company are to be located entirely outside of India.
Google will provide software, sensor, and imaging technology to help J&J develop new robotic surgery products, according to an earlier report in March when the companies announced their deal.
“For more than 60 years, Ethicon has developed products and technologies that have transformed the way surgery is done,” said Gary Pruden, worldwide chairman of J&J’s Global Surgery Group, in a news release. “This collaboration with Google is another important step in our commitment to advancing surgical care, and together, we aim to put the best science, technology and surgical know-how in the hands of medical teams around the world.”
With demand for robotic surgery devices expected to grow, medical device manufacturers are enlisting the help of nontraditional tech partners in order to compete with pioneer Intuitive Surgical's da Vinci robotic surgery platform.