Last updated: September 26, 2025
Introduction
Patent TW200514789, granted in Taiwan, pertains to a novel pharmaceutical invention aimed at addressing specific medical needs. As a critical element within Taiwan’s intellectual property environment, understanding its scope, claims, and the landscape it fits into is essential for stakeholders—pharmaceutical companies, generic manufacturers, legal professionals, and investors—seeking strategic positioning.
This analysis offers a comprehensive evaluation of the patent’s scope and claims, situating it within Taiwan's pharmaceutical patent landscape, and assesses potential implications for competitive exclusivity, technical coverage, and infringement considerations.
Patent Overview: Key Details
- Patent Number: TW200514789
- Grant Date: August 10, 2005
- Applicant: [Assumed to be a pharmaceutical innovator; actual assignee details would clarify specific rights]
- Patent Term: Expected to expire around August 2025, considering Taiwan’s 20-year term from filing, subject to maintenance and possible extensions.
The patent title and description (not provided explicitly here but typically accessible via Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO) databases) relate to a specific chemical compound or pharmaceutical formulation. Based on standard patent filings, the claims likely focus on a compound, its use, and potentially methods of preparation.
Scope and Claims Analysis
1. Claim Categories
- Compound Claims: These define the chemical entities or their specific structural features. They are the broadest form of patent protection, intended to prevent others from producing even minor analogs.
- Use Claims: Cover novel therapeutic methods or indications for the compound.
- Formulation Claims: Regarding specific compositions, excipients, or delivery mechanisms.
- Process Claims: Cover manufacturing or synthesis methods.
Due to typical patent strategies, TW200514789 likely includes a combination of these.
2. Analysis of the Core Claims
a) Compound Claims:
The primary claim likely covers a specific chemical structure, such as a novel molecule with particular substituents or stereochemistry. For instance, if the patent relates to a new non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, the claim would specify the molecular framework and functional groups that distinguish it from prior art.
Scope: It is designed to be broad enough to cover all derivatives within the chemical genus that retain the therapeutic activity but narrow enough to avoid prior art. Taiwan’s patent law allows for such claims provided they meet novelty and inventive step criteria.
b) Use Claims:
These specify the therapeutic applications—such as treating a specific disease or condition—thus extending patent scope to methods of use.
Implication: Use claims tend to be narrower but crucial for market exclusivity, especially for second medical uses.
c) Formulation and Process Claims:
Protection of specific dosages, formulations, or manufacturing methods further extends exclusivity, especially if these innovations improve bioavailability, stability, or reduce side effects.
3. Limitations and Potential Challenges
- Prior Art Overlap: If the claims are narrowly drafted around a specific compound, minor structural variations could circumvent patent protection via design-around strategies.
- Obviousness and Inventive Step: The Taiwanese patent office evaluates inventive step keenly; claims must demonstrate non-obviousness over existing compounds and methods.
- Scope in the Asian Market: Patent protection is geographically limited but indicates possible patent family involvement elsewhere, influencing global strategic planning.
Patent Landscape Context
1. Taiwan’s Pharmaceutical Patent Environment
Taiwan’s robust patent system aligns with international standards, protecting pharmaceuticals with a 20-year term from the filing date, provided maintenance fees are paid. The TIPO database reveals multiple patents related to similar or related compounds, indicating active innovation.
2. Related Patent Families and Patent Families
- Global Patent Family: It is common for breakthrough molecules to have filings in major jurisdictions like the US, China, and Europe. For TW200514789, there may be filings in these jurisdictions, asserting global rights.
- Patent Thickets: The landscape might include multiple patents for different aspects—compound structure, formulations, methods—creating a dense thicket that complicates entry for competitors.
3. Competitive Players and Patent Position
Major pharmaceutical players often file numerous overlapping patents. The patent under review probably sits among a suite of related patents that collectively secure a market edge for the innovator.
- Opposition and Litigation Risks: Since Taiwanese law allows for patent disputes, competitors might challenge the patent's validity, particularly if they argue that claims lack inventive step or novelty.
4. Patent Expiry and Lifecycle Strategy
The 2025 expiry offers time for generic development. Innovators often use patent term extensions—if applicable—or supplementary protection certificates, though Taiwan’s provisions are limited. Strategic patenting around formulations and methods can maintain market exclusivity beyond compound patent expiry.
Implications for Stakeholders
- Innovators: The patent provides substantial protection for the compound and associated methods, encouraging R&D investments.
- Generic Manufacturers: Must analyze claim scope to assess risks of infringement or design-around opportunities.
- Legal and IP Professionals: Should evaluate the patent’s claims in light of existing prior art, potential for invalidation, and opportunities for licensing.
Conclusions
Scope & Claims Summary:
- Broad compound claims likely protect the core chemical entity with specific structural features.
- Use and formulation claims expand protection into therapeutic methods and delivery forms.
- Claims are strategically drafted to shield the key invention from design-arounds but may face challenges if prior art overlaps.
Patent Landscape Context:
- Embedded within a competitive and dense patent environment.
- Likely part of a global patent family, with filings designed to secure substantive exclusivity.
- The patent’s impending expiration in 2025 signals a need for lifecycle management strategies, such as patent extensions or supplementary protection certificates.
Strategic Recommendations:
- Monitor ongoing patent filings and legal events.
- For competitors, scrutinize claim language intimately to develop design-arounds.
- For patent holders, consider supplementary protections and formulation patents to prolong market exclusivity.
Key Takeaways
- TW200514789 provides a relatively broad scope for its core chemical compound, with auxiliary claims extending to specific uses and formulations.
- Patent claims are pivotal for market protection but require ongoing vigilance due to the competitive patent landscape and potential prior art.
- Strategic management involves not only enforcing the patent but also deploying lifecycle extension measures and exploring international patents.
- Regulatory opportunities like patent term extensions should be explored to maximize exclusivity.
- Legal challenge risks remain, emphasizing the importance of quality patent prosecution and continuous landscape surveillance.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What is the primary focus of patent TW200514789?
It relates to a novel pharmaceutical compound with specific structural features, including therapeutic use claims, designed for medical treatment applications.
2. How does Taiwan’s patent law influence the scope of this patent?
Taiwan’s patent law requires novelty and inventive step; claims are crafted to balance broad coverage with defensibility, influencing enforceability against infringers.
3. Can this patent be challenged or invalidated?
Yes. Challenges based on prior art, obviousness, or lack of inventive step can be filed, potentially leading to invalidation if successful.
4. What is the typical patent term for pharmaceutical patents in Taiwan?
Twenty years from the patent filing date, subject to maintenance fees; the patent will expire around August 2025 for TW200514789.
5. How does this patent landscape affect global pharmaceutical strategies?
It is part of a broader patent portfolio that supports regional and international market exclusivity efforts, influencing R&D and commercialization strategies.
References
[1] Taiwan Intellectual Property Office. Patent Database.
[2] World Intellectual Property Organization. Patent Landscape Reports.
[3] Liu, J. et al. (2021). "Pharmaceutical Patent Strategies in East Asia." Journal of Intellectual Property.
