We have examined all the US patents (444) issued to homegrown Indian pharma and pharma biotech firms. Most (425, 95%) patents are pharma patents not biotech (19). Also, only 11 patents have been cited ten times or more. This data provides one snapshot of the biotech industry in India today. It...

In any assessment of the R&D capabilities of Indian companies, their patent holdings would have to be examined. Here we identify the number of patents assigned by four foreign governments to Indian pharmaceutical and biotechnological companies up to December 31, 2009. It is known that the United...

Patents are important for biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. In order to remain valid, an issued patent has to be ‘maintained’ by the payment of fees to the patent office at three well-defined times over several years. The article examines whether Indian companies in these sectors...

In order to help reduce drug prices, governments in countries such as India are devising policies to help local biotech companies. These companies are also initiating original drug discovery programmes. How much should these governments and companies be concerned about patents? We have...