Pfizer Shares Rise After Viagra Patent Win

A Beijing court has sided with the drugmaker Pfizer Inc. in a ruling against local drug makers keen to sell generic versions of Viagra in China — though it was unclear if the decision would dent the widespread availability of fake versions of the impotence drug.
The Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People's Court on Monday overturned a 2004 decision by China's patent review board. An official, who like most Chinese bureaucrats refused to give her name, confirmed the decision but said she could not provide other information.
It was unclear how the patent review board at China's State Intellectual Property Office would react to the decision. Staff at SIPO in Beijing said they had no comment. Usually, appeals of Chinese court decisions must be made within 15 days.
At least a dozen Chinese drug companies have been seeking the right to make sildenafil citrate, the main active ingredient in the erectile dysfunction drug, challenging Pfizer's exclusive right to the blue pill.
The case was seen as a test of China's willingness to protect patents, copyrights and trademarks. Pfizer welcomed the decision to uphold its patent rights, which have remained in effect pending resolution of the dispute.
"This decision affirms Chinas commitment toward an effective patent protection environment and boosts the confidence of the business community in China as an investment location," Pfizer said in a statement.
"Pfizer believes that this decision will give businesses that critically depend on intellectual property protection renewed confidence in the value of a Chinese patent," it said, referring other inquiries to its New York headquarters.
Pfizer shares rose 21 cents to $24.40 in early trading Monday on the New York Stock Exchange.

Despite Beijing's repeated pledges to crack down on widespread counterfeiting, most drugs with the "Viagra" label sold in China are counterfeit versions. Bogus versions of the drug increasingly are showing up in other markets including the U.S. and Europe.
Viagra was introduced in China in 2000, and after six months on the market, state media reported that some 90 percent of Viagra pills sold in Shanghai were fake.
China is a potentially huge market for the drug, known locally as "weige," or "great brother" in Chinese, given the country's tradition of using various substances to boost sexual performance.
Local drug makers have stepped up patent challenges in hopes of being allowed to market generic copies of various drugs. Those involved in the dispute with Pfizer, known as the "Weige Alliance," were expected to appeal the court's decision.
"We respect the Chinese law and the decision made by the court. But we may appeal. That's all I can say at the moment," said Qing Liang, a spokesman for Guangzhou Baiyunshan Pharmaceutical Co., one of the companies hoping to make a generic version.
As a part of its agreement when it joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, China agreed to tighten patent protections and to encourage its own companies to invest in creating profitable new drugs and other products. But enforcement of many court decisions in favor of foreign manufacturers has been weak.
In Pfizer's case, the Patent Review Board had applied a new law retroactively, denying Pfizer's patent on the grounds that the company had not disclosed enough information about how the drug was made.
Its opponents also argued, among other things, that the drug did not meet the Chinese legal requirement of being a truly new invention, because it was developed by researchers working on medications for heart disease and high blood pressure.


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