Latest News & Features
Big Pharma
Gilead Sciences has agreed to drop the lucrative “orphan drug” designation for an antiviral touted as a potential coronavirus treatment, after criticism from activists and politicians including Bernie Sanders. 26 March 2020
Americas
Medical device maker Abbott has secured a series of case-ending sanctions against a wholesaler, bringing the five-year-long dispute to a close. 26 March 2020
Genetics
Despite a recent swing in momentum to the University of California, it’s still too early to say who is likely to emerge triumphant in the CRISPR patent battle. 26 March 2020
Americas
The Costa Rican government has asked the World Health Organization to create a voluntary pool to collect patent rights for technologies that are useful for the detection, prevention, control and treatment of the COVID-19 pandemic. 26 March 2020
Africa
Companies registered in the US are hit hardest by the trade in counterfeit medicines, which in 2016 reached $4.4 billion, according to a report from the European Union Intellectual Property Office. 24 March 2020
Generics
Israel has approved generic versions of an HIV antiviral owned by AbbVie for use in treating coronavirus, despite the company still holding patent protection and doubts over its effectiveness. 24 March 2020
Big Pharma
Counterfeit face masks and unauthorised antiviral medication have been seized under Interpol’s annual Operation Pangea, as criminals seek to take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic by exploiting demand. 24 March 2020
Europe
UK engineering company Smiths Group is making the IP covering one of its ventilators available to other manufacturers, as part of an industry attempt to tackle the shortage of life-saving equipment. 23 March 2020
Americas
California-based Pacific Biosciences has accused a UK rival of exploiting the coronavirus pandemic in a patent infringement trial. 19 March 2020
Americas
Biogen and the University of Zurich have accused New York-based Creative Biolabs of unlawfully selling copies of Biogen’s aducanumab antibody. 19 March 2020