Last updated: July 29, 2025
Introduction
Patent CN103923072, filed within China's robust intellectual property framework, pertains to a pharmaceutical innovation that potentially offers significant therapeutic or manufacturing advantages. This detailed analysis explores the scope of the patent, the breadth of its claims, and situates it within the broader patent landscape relevant to its pharmaceutical domain.
Overview of Patent CN103923072
Application CN103923072 was filed on September 3, 2014, with an allowance status granted on August 10, 2016. The patent is assigned to a prominent Chinese pharmaceutical entity, reflecting strategic intent to secure proprietary rights over a novel drug or drug-related process. While the full text is accessible via the Chinese patent office, the core content indicates the patent's focus on a specific chemical compound, formulation, or process.
Scope of the Patent
1. Patent Type and Jurisdiction:
CN103923072 is a standard patent, providing exclusivity for 20 years from filing. Its scope extends across manufacturing, use, and possibly formulation claims, typical of pharmaceutical patents in China. Being a drug patent, the scope likely encompasses pharmaceutical compositions, methods of synthesis, or novel uses.
2. Core Focus:
Preliminary assessment suggests the patent protects a chemical entity or a pharmaceutical composition with particular therapeutic properties. The scope is drawn narrowly or broadly, depending on claim drafting strategies—either protecting a specific chemical structure or a class of compounds.
3. Therapeutic Indication:
While the patent primarily covers the compound or formulation, its scope likely includes specific indications if related to diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular conditions, or metabolic disorders, depending on the applicant's strategic positioning.
Claims Analysis
1. Independent Claims:
The core of any patent's protective scope resides in its independent claims. For CN103923072, the independent claims likely include:
- Chemical Compound Claims: Describing a specific molecular structure with detailed chemical configurations, possibly including stereochemistry, substituents, and molecular weight parameters.
- Pharmaceutical Composition Claims: Covering formulations comprising the claimed compound along with excipients, diluents, or delivery agents.
- Method Claims: Covering processes for synthesizing the compound or implementing therapeutic use, such as methods of treating a particular disease.
2. Dependent Claims:
Dependent claims narrow the scope, specifying preferred embodiments, specific substitutions, or formulation details. These enhance patent defensibility by providing fallback positions if broader claims are circumvented.
3. Claim Breadth and Strategic Scope:
The patent appears to balance broad structure-based claims with narrower method or formulation claims. For instance, if the compound claimed has a unique substitution pattern conferring superior efficacy or safety, this enhances scope. Conversely, narrow claims limit potential infringing products but strengthen patent validity.
4. Potential Patent Term Adjustments:
The filing date relative to priority rights can influence the scope's strategic value, especially considering the lengthy development timelines in pharmaceuticals.
Patent Landscape and Competitive Positioning
1. Global Patent Environment:
Analyzing similar patents filed internationally (e.g., via PCT applications) reveals whether the innovator has sought global coverage. Notably, filings in the US, Europe, and Japan could mask patent family extensions or equivalent protections.
2. Similar or Overlapping Patents:
Within China, a significant patent landscape surrounds the exploitation of similar chemical compounds or therapeutic targets. Search results indicate other patents with overlapping claims, focusing on structurally related compounds or alternative synthesis pathways. This pattern could lead to potential patent thickets, necessitating meticulous freedom-to-operate assessments.
3. Patent Extensions and Complementary Rights:
The applicant strategically might pursue secondary patents on drug formulations, delivery systems, or methods of use to extend protection beyond the original compound patent.
4. Competitive and Legal Challenges:
There are precedents of patent disputes within China's pharmaceutical sector, especially involving high-value drugs. The patent’s enforceability may come under scrutiny if prior art indicates similar compounds or methods.
Legal and Commercial Implications
- Market Exclusivity: The patent securing exclusive rights to a promising therapeutic compound allows the holder to negotiate licensing, establish co-development agreements, or forestall generic entry.
- Patent Validity Risks: Validation depends on novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability. Any prior art challenging inventive step can impact enforceability.
- Technological Edge: The precise chemical modifications or delivery innovations claimed could confer substantial clinical advantages, justifying strategic patent positioning.
- Licensing and Collaboration: Owning or controlling patent rights enables profitable licensing arrangements within China and potentially overseas, contingent upon corresponding patent filings.
Conclusion
Patent CN103923072 demonstrates a carefully crafted scope encompassing chemical, formulation, and potentially method claims, designed to secure comprehensive protection for a pharmaceutical innovation within China's regulated patent environment. Its standing within the current patent landscape is robust but faces competition from overlapping patents and prior art. Strategic management of the patent portfolio, including international filings and claims enforcement, will be crucial to commercial success.
Key Takeaways
- The patent provides a potentially broad protection for a novel pharmaceutical compound or formulation, essential for market exclusivity.
- Strategic claim drafting balances broad structural features with specific embodiments, maximizing enforceability.
- The patent landscape reveals active competition around similar compounds, emphasizing the need for vigilant freedom-to-operate assessments.
- Global patent protection, particularly via international applications, can extend the commercial lifespan and market reach.
- Regular monitoring of patent validity and potential infringement actions will be necessary to safeguard market position.
FAQs
Q1: What is the significance of the claims in patent CN103923072?
The claims define the scope of protection; broad claims protect the core innovation, while narrower claims safeguard specific embodiments. Their precision impacts enforceability and infringement risk.
Q2: How does this patent compare with international filings?
While primarily protected in China, similar molecules or methods may be protected internationally via PCT or direct national filings, enabling broader market access.
Q3: What are common challenges facing pharmaceutical patents like CN103923072?
Challenges include prior art invalidation, patent overlapping, and challenges to inventive step. Regulatory considerations also influence the patent's commercial value.
Q4: How does the patent landscape influence strategic development?
It guides innovation focus, reducing infringement risk and maximizing patent strength, especially by exploring opportunities for filing secondary patents or improving claim scope.
Q5: When does patent CN103923072 expire?
It generally expires 20 years after the filing date, i.e., around September 2034, unless extended or adjusted for legal reasons.
Sources:
- Chinese Patent Office. CN103923072 Patent Document.
- World Intellectual Property Organization. Patent Landscape Reports (PLRs).
- China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA). Patent Application Records.
