Last updated: August 1, 2025
Introduction
Patent WO2007109104, filed under the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), pertains to innovations in the pharmaceutical domain. As part of a strategic intellectual property assessment, understanding the patent’s scope, claims, and its position within the broader patent landscape is critical for stakeholders, including pharmaceutical companies, legal professionals, and R&D entities. This analysis provides an in-depth evaluation of WO2007109104, emphasizing its legal claims, technological scope, and strategic significance within the patent ecosystem.
Overview of WO2007109104
Publication Details:
- Publication Number: WO2007109104
- Filing Date: 07 March 2007
- Publication Date: 27 September 2007
- Applicant: Not explicitly specified in the provided data; typically, WIPO publishes applications from various entities.
The patent appears to focus on a novel pharmaceutical composition or method, potentially related to drug derivatives, formulations, or therapeutic uses, based on typical WIPO disclosures.
Legal Scope and Claims Analysis
1. Nature of Claims
The claims of WO2007109104 define the scope of legal protection conferred. Generally, WIPO patents in the pharmaceutical field often encompass:
- Chemical compounds or derivatives with specific structural features.
- Methods of manufacturing or synthesizing these compounds.
- Therapeutic methods employing the compounds for particular indications.
- Formulation-specific claims addressing delivery mechanisms, stability, or bioavailability.
Assuming typical claim structure, the patent likely includes:
- Independent Claims: Covering core compounds or primary methods.
- Dependent Claims: Adding specific embodiments, such as particular substituents, dosage regimes, or formulations.
Example (Hypothetical, as exact claims are inaccessible):
“An isolated compound comprising a chemical structure of formula [X], wherein R1 and R2 are selected from group A, B, C,” signaling protection for a class of compounds.
2. Scope of Protection
The scope hinges on the breadth of the independent claims:
- Broad Claims: Cover multiple compounds or methods, offering extensive market exclusivity.
- Narrow Claims: Focus on specific chemical species or precise methodologies, providing targeted protection but potentially more vulnerable to design-around strategies.
Given the patent’s publication date, the scope ostensibly aligns with contemporaneous pharmaceutical patenting trends, balancing breadth against the risk of invalidation due to prior art.
3. Claim Language and Strategic Implications
- Use of Markush structures: Enables coverage of a broad class of compounds, facilitating patent strength across various derivatives.
- Method Claims: Protect methods of synthesis or therapy, adding layers of exclusivity.
- Formulation Claims: Address delivery forms, critical in drug patenting to prevent generics.
The language likely emphasizes novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability, complying with WIPO’s standards.
Patent Landscape Context
1. Jurisdictional Coverage
As a WO publication, the patent application is accessible across multiple jurisdictions via PCT, offering potential protection in key markets (e.g., US, EU, China). Actual national filings following WO2007109104’s publication would further delineate territorial strategies.
2. Patent Family and Related Applications
- The patent family may include national applications filed in jurisdictions of commercial interest.
- Related filings could involve continuations, divisionals, or patents stemming from family members, indicating ongoing R&D or defensive strategies.
3. Prior Art and Similar Patents
- Similar patents likely exist in databases such as USPTO, EPO, and CNIPA, covering analogous compounds or methods.
- The patent’s validity depends on its ability to demonstrate inventive step amidst such prior art.
4. Competitive Landscape
In the pharmaceutical sector, patents often cluster around specific therapeutic targets or chemical classes. WO2007109104’s uniqueness might hinge on novel substitutions or mechanisms of action that distinguish it from existing patents.
5. Patent Litigation and Licensing Landscape
- A thorough search reveals whether the patent has been litigated, licensed, or challenged, indicating commercial value.
- In the absence of litigations or licensing data specific to this patent, its strategic importance remains inferred from its scope and claims.
Technological and Strategic Significance
The patent’s claims potentially protect a key chemical scaffold or therapy method, contributing to a patent fortress in a high-value segment. Its position within the patent landscape influences:
- Freedom-to-Operate: Companies must analyze whether WO2007109104 overlaps with existing patents.
- Innovation Pathways: It can serve as a foundation for subsequent patent filings, especially if it covers a broad chemical class.
Concluding Remarks
WO2007109104 exemplifies the strategic value of early-stage pharmaceutical patents filed via WIPO’s PCT system. Its scope likely encompasses broad chemical and methodological claims designed to protect foundational aspects of a drug candidate or class. For businesses, understanding its claims, territorial coverage, and relation to prior art enables informed decisions on licensing, design-around strategies, and R&D direction.
Key Takeaways
- Scope and Claims: The patent likely employs broad chemical and method claims, which, if well-crafted, provide extensive protection against competitors.
- Patent Landscape Position: Its place within the global patent ecosystem depends on subsequent national filings and the existence of related patents, influencing market exclusivity and freedom to operate.
- Strategic Importance: For innovators, a thorough understanding of the patent’s claims can inform both offensive and defensive IP strategies, including licensing and R&D planning.
- Regulatory and Commercial Relevance: The patent’s positioning correlates with potential patentable innovations in drug development, formulation, or delivery, impacting market exclusivity timelines.
- Monitoring and Enforcement: Ongoing patent monitoring is vital to detect potential infringements or to identify opportunities for licensing negotiations.
FAQs
1. What types of claims are typically included in WIPO drug patents like WO2007109104?
They generally include chemical compound claims, method of production, therapeutic use claims, and formulation or delivery claims, designed to maximize patent scope and market protection.
2. How does the patent landscape around WO2007109104 affect generic drug development?
The scope and validity of the patent can delay generic entry. Broader claims or strategic extensions through continuations may extend exclusivity, while narrow claims or invalidations open pathways for generics.
3. Can this patent’s scope be challenged or circumvented?
Yes. Competitors can challenge its inventive step based on prior art or design-around claims by developing structurally different compounds or alternative methods not covered by the patent.
4. What role does jurisdictional coverage play for WO2007109104?
As a PCT publication, it facilitates filing in multiple jurisdictions, but enforcement and validity depend on subsequent national conversions and local patent laws.
5. How does the patent’s placement within the broader patent landscape influence R&D investments?
A strong, broad patent can incentivize investment by securing market exclusivity, while a narrow or vulnerable patent may prompt companies to seek alternative pathways or alliances.
Sources:
[1] World Intellectual Property Organization, WO2007109104 Patent Publication.
[2] WIPO Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) Data, Global Patent Landscape Reports.
[3] Patent databases (USPTO, EPO) for similar claims and related filings.
