[joosters]

upon request we are also willing to license our intellectual property for COVID-19 vaccines to others

How is that different from what they would be doing normally? Companies generally like to license their IP, it brings in lots of cash for little (extra) effort. Note that they don't claim to be offering reduced license fees in this part of their statement!

[Kalium]

Companies like Moderna that are currently using IP are not always willing to license it. Sometimes they prefer to keep it in-house and reserved for their own use.

[ethbr0]

Especially given not all of the world has a tradition of caring about foreign IP enforcement. Say, post-pandemic and when you'd like to use Moderna's methods for other drugs.

Which, say what you want about IP law, but pharma objectively has the best claim to it -- if we want new drugs and safety, exclusivity periods and sole ownership of IP are the only way to balance the massive initial financial outlay. (Without funding it directly from government)

[bluGill]

Sometimes. Most companies have a complex set of what they license and what they don't. In part it is based on fees, in part based on what the other will do it with it.