EARLY RULING FAVORS AMGEN JUDGE FINDS PATENT INFRINGED.Byline: Jason Z. Cohen cohen or kohen (Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male. Staff Writer THOUSAND OAKS Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. - A federal judge in Boston gave Amgen Inc. an initial victory in its patent infringement patent infringement n. the manufacture and/or use of an invention or improvement for which someone else owns a patent issued by the government, without obtaining permission of the owner of the patent by contract, license or waiver. fight with a genetic therapy rival Wednesday. Judge William G. Young Judge William G. Young is a United States District Judge for the District of Massachusetts. He has served the public for almost all of his professional life, which started with his time in the United States Army where he served as a Captain from 1962 until 1964. issued a summary judgment finding that Cambridge, Mass.-based Transkaryotic Therapies Inc. infringed on one of Amgen's patents for Epogen, a blockbuster drug A blockbuster drug is a drug generating more than $1 billion of revenue for its owner each year. The search for blockbusters has been the foundation of the R&D strategy adopted by big pharmaceutical companies, but this looks set to change. that stimulates red blood cell red blood cell: see blood. production. The ruling covers one of 18 claims Amgen has made regarding five patents it owns on the $1.76 billion-selling drug, its manufacturing process and the cells used in its manufacture. Amgen's patent protection expires in 2013. ``It's a very important first step,'' said Amgen spokesman David Kaye. ``Summary judgments in case law are not normally given if there's a material dispute of fact.'' The judge rejected summary judgment motions on two other claims. The companies will go to trial on the remaining 17 claims May 15. Also to be proved at trial is whether the patent ruled infringed Wednesday is valid and whether it is enforceable, Kaye said. Analyst Doug Christopher, who follows Amgen's stock for Los Angeles-based Crowell Weedon & Co., said the favorable ruling bodes well for Amgen's case. ``Amgen developed this compound. It's just an initial step in the right direction for Amgen,'' Christopher said. At issue in the case is whether Transkaryotic Therapies and its partner, Hoechst Marion Roussel - now called Aventis SA - violated Amgen's patent protection when they developed a new means of making erythropoietin erythropoietin /eryth·ro·poi·e·tin/ (-poi´e-tin) a glycoprotein hormone secreted by the kidney in the adult and by the liver in the fetus, which acts on stem cells of the bone marrow to stimulate red blood cell production , the substance on which Epogen is based. ``We're at a very early stage in the case, and we believe it's premature to draw conclusions on the final outcome of the trial based on today's ruling,'' TKT TKT Ticket TKT Transketolase TKT Twisted Kaiju Theater (web forum) TKT T Kang Taekwondo (New York) TKT Thin Kerf Technologies spokeswoman Justine Koenigsberg said Wednesday. ``We believe we have compelling arguments and remain confident in our legal position.'' Amgen investors took the news well: Amgen's shares were higher by 5.4 percent, closing at $57.25. TKT's shares lost 12.8 percent to close at $28 per share Wednesday. Amgen's protection of its Epogen patent benefits not only Amgen, but Johnson & Johnson as well, Christopher said. The pharmaceutical giant markets Procrit, a version of Epogen sold under license from Amgen. With the loss of its product Propulsid, which was pulled from the market because of concerns it caused heart problems, Johnson & Johnson is especially vulnerable if it loses Epogen's patent protection, Christopher said. |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion