The UK Independent newspaper reports how the stock prices of the major pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca may be affected by two challenges to the validity of some of its patents. The Israeli company Teva Pharmaceuticals is challenging the patent protecting the product Seroquel in the United States whilst German company Ratiopharm is challenging the validity of the patent protecting Nexium in the European Patent Office.
The US Investment Bank SG Cowen has estimated that these products represent a quarter of AstraZeneca's turnover which could be wiped out if generics companies are allowed to produce copies.
Since I have not looked at the validity challenges in any detail, I cannot comment on the merits of the case. However, the challenges show that the patent system is working in allowing challenges to the validity of bad patents - despite the claims in some quarters. Given the length of the battle between AstraZeneca and the generics companies this does suggest that there is merit in both sides arguments - it will be up to the courts of the patent offices in the end to decide which side has the better arguments and also whether the older work (prior art) cited by the challengers is sufficiently close to lead to revocation of the patent.
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