Patent Term and Opportunities for Managing IT

Large biopharmaceutical companies are at the forefront of exploring increasingly sophisticated intellectual property strategies for maximizing return on their R&D efforts. These strategies were born out of the recognition that during the next five years, several of the top 15 biopharmaceutical products will come off patent, creating a world market opportunity approximating $20 billion.¹ Add in the fact that R&D productivity dropped 25 percent between the first half 1990s and the second half of the decade² and a recognition of recent legislative efforts to reform the regulatory framework established by the Hatch-Waxman Act, and the reasons for the push to protect these companies’ intellectual property becomes apparent.³ This article provides an overview of proactive patent procurement strategies for creating a value chain framework⁴ aimed at identifying and protecting not only innovations resulting from earlier R&D efforts but also innovations available during the high-profit stages