Novartis lose Indian Glivec/Gleevec appeal

As reported by the BBC, Reuters, Bloomberg and others, Novartis have lost their appeal against a refusal of their patent application for Glivec (known as Gleevec in the US).

The IPKat previously noted that Indian patent law was against Glivec from the start, given that there was a specific prohibition against patenting of new derivatives of known substances (which Glivec undoubtedly is), barring a significant difference in efficacy. Novartis have been unable to show any significantly increased efficacy for Glivec, and the Chennai court hearing the case was unwilling to rule on India's requirements under TRIPs.

As before, the IPKat is unsure whether this decision is a sensible one, and the rest of the world is out of step, or if India wants to continue taking a free ride on drug developments arriving from outside. In any case, if Glivec is no better than previously available drugs, is patentability really the issue? Could it instead be more to do with a well-marketed trade mark, and the barriers to entry afforded by marketing authorisations?

For a more in-depth analysis of the issues involved, the IPKat recommends his readers to the India-focused Spicy IP blog.