2nd Annual Bioequivalence and Bioavailability Studies - Full Agenda LEARN MORE http://www.bioequivalenceevent.com/redForms.aspx?id=532198&pdf_form=1?&shownewswindow=1&utm_source=PharmaIQ&utm_medium=SMO&mac=PMIQ_Slideshare&utm_campaign=Slideshare&utm_term=pdf

1. Europe Remains Most Important for Patent
Strategies for 83.3% of Pharma Firms
Right across the global pharmaceutical industry, companies are desperately
seeking to diversify their product portfolios in anticipation of the countless
patent expiries to follow those already seen around the world.
According to business information provider Datamonitor, the 2011 'patent cliff'
is set to claim $78 billion (£49 billion) in global sales from brands with patents
due to expire anywhere between 2010 and 2014. As a result, it has arguably
never been more important for drug companies to ensure they have a solid
application and litigation strategy in place. By developing robust strategies,
firms should be able to extend their market exclusivity, establish their own
intellectual property (IP) position and protect their existing patents.
In a recent Pharma IQ survey, conducted among key community figures
ahead of the 7th Annual Developing IP Strategies for Crystalline Forms event
in October, insight was gained as to the main challenges facing patent
professionals in the months ahead. Also revealed were the key geographical
regions expected to play the most significant part in drug companies' future
patent strategies. Respondents to the questionnaire shared details of exactly
how many litigation cases they were currently involved in, as well as how
much of their time was committed to handling them.

2. Finally, the Pharma IQ research highlighted the extent to which external
counsels are being used. Delegates also revealed what they look for when
choosing a law firm and whether their current counsels were performing to a
satisfactory level.
Key patenting challenges
Since 2011 marked the beginning of the six-year 'patent cliff', bringing record
patent expiries of blockbuster drugs sold across the globe, the unique
challenges involved in patenting crystalline forms have in recent time come
increasingly into focus. Pharma IQ's annual Developing IP Strategies for
Crystalline Forms event will provide practical solutions to the most common
problems in patent application, as well as offering expert insight into the best
litigation strategies.
Patent professionals polled ahead of this year's event indicated what they
believed to be their greatest single challenge as they further their IP strategies
in the next 12 months. Drafting robust patent applications was found to be the
key concern facing 14.3 per cent of delegates. An identical share of the vote
was taken by respondents citing the task of proving innovation in their new
crystalline forms as their biggest IP challenge.

3. Securing a supplementary protection certificate (SPC) proved to be the main
struggle anticipated by a further 14.3 per cent of participants. But it was the
challenge involved with implementing defensive patent strategies that claimed
the remaining 57.1 per cent of responses.
Most important world regions
The 'patent cliff' phenomenon is one which threatens to crush the revenues
and future prosperity of drug companies operating in every corner of the
world. It is therefore essential that pharma professionals involved with
patenting learn as much as they can about the application requirements for all
of the regions contributing to their global IP strategy. It is to be expected,
however, that certain geographical areas will be more important to future
strategies than others.
In the latest Pharma IQ survey of pharma patent professionals, it was
developed markets which appeared to remain the core focus of drug
companies' IP strategic planning. Europe was named an important
geographical region to the patent strategies of 83.3 per cent, while the US
was found to be a main area of interest for 33.3 per cent of respondents.
Asia was cited as a priority by just 16.7 per cent of participants in the study,
while India and South America were not singled out as the most important
regions by anyone. This suggests that the focus of patenting strategy remains
on developed economies as opposed to emerging markets.

4. Division of resources
Key to the success of any pharmaceutical firm's IP strategy will be ensuring
that sufficient time and resources are allocated to all important patenting
procedures. The Pharma IQ survey revealed a broadly even spread of
resources between application drafting and litigation.
In terms of how long was being spent on drafting patent applications, 57.1 per
cent of respondents said that it accounted for less than 25 per cent of their
time. Meanwhile, 28.6 per cent of delegates said application drafting was
responsible for at least half of their time, while 14.3 per cent estimated a
figure between 25 and 49 per cent.
Looking at the amount of time firms were spending on litigation proceedings,
42 per cent suggested less than a quarter of their resources were being used
in this area. Again, 14.3 per cent cited figures between 25 and 49 per cent,
while an identical proportion suggested that it claimed up to three-quarters of
their time. Interestingly, 28.6 per cent of respondents estimated that exactly
half of their resources were being spent on litigation.
Use of external counsels
Pharma IQ's research indicates that 85.3 per cent of firms are currently
involved in fewer than four litigation cases, while only 14.3 per cent have a

5. greater number of court proceedings to handle. It was also found that many
drug companies are using external counsels.
In fact, 71.5 per cent of the industry professionals surveyed revealed that this
was the case in their organisation. In terms of satisfaction levels, 83.3 per
cent of delegates from firms using an external counsel claimed to be happy
with the service they were currently receiving.
When asked to name what they believed to be the most important factor when
choosing a law firm with which to partner, 66.7 per cent of respondents
unsurprisingly cited expertise as their main concern. The reputation of their
chosen firm and the relationship shared between company and counsel each
received just 16.7 per cent of the vote.
th th
The 7 Annual Developing IP Strategies for Crystalline Forms event will be hosted from 24
th
to 26 October 2011 in London, UK. For details, visit the website: www.ipcrys.com, email:
enquire@iqpc.co.uk or call freephone: 0800 652 2363.