LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Barkby Group division Barkby Life Sciences has signed an agreement with Cambridge Sound Technologies UK, it announced on Tuesday, for the exclusive design of, and acquisition of the intellectual property rights related to, a device to improve and facilitate natural sleep.
The AIM-traded firm said it had agreed revised terms, which now comprised initial cash consideration of ?0.12m to cover design costs incurred to date, with two further payments of ?60,000 upon completion of certain milestones.

It said the acquiring vehicle had been granted a license for the algorithm of the product on a perpetual basis, in exchange for a royalty payment per unit sold.

Barkby said it was expecting to advance a total of ?1.5m of working capital into the acquiring vehicle, Cambridge Sleep Sciences.

Commercial production of the device was expected to start in the second half of 2020.

Barkby said it would subsequently own 85% of Cambridge Sleep Sciences, with the remaining 15% owned by the management team.

Dr Julian Stone and Dr Chris Dickson had been appointed chief executive officer and executive chairman of Cambridge Sleep Science, respectively.

Barkby said Dr Stone had more than 20 years of experience in medical technology, big data and analytics, and a "strong" track record of advising small to medium enterprises on strategic, operational and commercial planning.

Dr Dickson, meanwhile, had 37 years of experience in the medical industry, holding a number of roles including head of healthcare services for Bupa, and director of international strategy at EMIS Group.

He currently held several non-executive director roles in the healthcare technologies space, and was executive chairman at VivoPlex Group.

Charles Dickson and Douglas Benzie - executive chairman and chief financial officer of the Barkby Group, respectively, would also join the board of Cambridge Sleep Sciences.

The Barkby board said it was expecting that Cambridge Sleep Sciences would be earnings accretive to its financial performance in the year ending 30 June 2021.

"Barkby is very excited to be working with Cambridge Sound Technologies on the development of this revolutionary product that has the potential to improve the lives of millions of people suffering from sleep-related issues," said Charles Dickson.

"The market opportunity for this product is enormous, and this agreement, following so soon after VivoPlex's announcement yesterday regarding the MHRA approval for the commencement of its clinical feasibility study, is further evidence of Barkby Life Sciences' positive momentum in spite of the challenging market backdrop."

At 1500 BST, shares in the Barkby Group were up 0.21% at 23.5p.

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