Fort Worth-based Alcon, the eye care division of Novartis, announced March 18 it has acquired PowerVision Inc., a privately-held, U.S.-based medical device development company focused on creating fluid-based intraocular lens implants.
Under the terms of the agreement, Alcon paid $285 million to PowerVision at closing with additional payments based on specified regulatory and commercial milestones starting in 2023. The acquisition furthers Alcon’s commitment to bring this innovative, accommodating lens to cataract patients throughout the world.
Commercial availability of PowerVision’s IOL technology will be determined following significant additional development and clinical trials of the intraocular lens, according to an Alcon news release.
“As the industry leader in cataract surgery, we’re eager to accelerate development of this potentially breakthrough accommodating lens technology,” said Michael Onuscheck, president of Global Business and Innovation. “By treating cataracts and restoring natural, continuous range of vision, this intraocular lens may be the preferred IOL for cataract surgery patients who desire spectacle independence.”
Novartis announced in June it planned to spin off its eye care division, Alcon. The acquisition of PowerVision will make Alcon more attractive to investors, according to several analysts.
PowerVision’s lens design utilizes the eye’s natural accommodating response to transport fluid in the intraocular lens which is implanted in the eye’s capsular bag. While most presbyopia-correcting intraocular lenses use a multifocal design that distributes light between different focal points, PowerVision’s fluid-based design creates a continuously variable monofocal lens, utilizing the natural contraction of the eye’s muscles. This technology allows the patient to actively focus on objects, just as the natural crystalline lens does in a youthful eye, providing patients with a natural, continuous range of vision.
“We’re thrilled to officially join Alcon and its pioneering history of launching new innovation in the field of ophthalmology,” said Barry Cheskin, president and CEO and co-founder of PowerVision. “We look forward to bringing this innovative IOL technology to eye care providers and customers in the years ahead.”
Alcon is maintaining its 2023 financial outlook provided at the Capital Markets Days in the fourth quarter of 2018.