Anticompetitive Patent Acquisitions in the Pharmaceutical Industry

Abstract

Pharmaceutical companies use various strategies to protect their market monopoly. One of such practices is an acquisition of a patent developed by a third party. Such acquisitions allow pharmaceutical companies to strengthen their market power by extending the life of the product; for instance, by acquiring patents that cover alternative non-infringing versions of the monopolist’s own product, or acquiring the patent that covers an improvement of its current product. Both the US and EU case law condemn such practices as an abuse of monopoly power. This Article discusses patent acquisitions in the pharmaceutical industry focusing on two recent EU and US cases investigated by the competition authorities.