The in vitro activity of AZD2563, a new oxazolidinone, was compared with that of linezolid, vancomycin, quinupristin/dalfopristin, amoxicillin, levofloxacin, penicillin, erythromycin, azithromycin and clindamycin against a range of pneumococci by microdilution and time-kill studies. Against 300 pneumococci (99 penicillin susceptible, 86 penicillin intermediate, 115 penicillin resistant, 185 erythromycin resistant, 35 quinolone resistant), both oxazolidinones remained active against isolates less susceptible to other agents, with MICs ranging between 0.125 and 2 mg/L; AZD2563 MICs were generally one dilution lower than those of linezolid. Both quinupristin/dalfopristin and vancomycin were active against all groups (MIC ranges 0.125-2 and 0.125-0.25 mg/L, respectively). Apart from 35 isolates with levofloxacin MICs > or= 8 mg/L, levofloxacin MICs were < or =0.25-4 mg/L. MICs of amoxicillin and erythromycin rose with penicillin G MICs; most macrolide-resistant isolates were either penicillin-intermediate or -resistant. Against 16 organisms with differing beta-lactam, macrolide and quinolone MICs, time-kill studies showed that AZD2563 was bactericidal (99.9% killing) at 4 x MIC against nine strains at 24 h, with 90% killing of all 16 strains at 2 x MIC after 12 h. Similar results were obtained with linezolid. Both oxazolidinones were bacteriostatic at the MIC against all 16 strains. Amoxicillin, levofloxacin and vancomycin, at 2 x MIC, were bactericidal against 15 of the 16 strains after 24 h. Quinupristin/dalfopristin yielded the most rapid killing, with bactericidal activity against 13 of 16 strains at the MIC after 3 h and against 15 strains at 2 x MIC after 24 h. Erythromycin was bactericidal against all 10 strains with MICs < or= 8 mg/L at 4 x MIC after 24 h.