Pharma patent filings peaked sharply in 2014, report shows

Worldwide applications for pharmaceutical patents “peaked sharply” in 2014, reaching around 28,000, a report has shown.

The report, titled “2015 CMR International Pharmaceutical R&D”, was published today, July 4, by CMR International, a Thomson Reuters business.

CMR looked into the key developments surrounding research and development (R&D) in the pharma industry.

It said that the total number of global patent applications covering pharma technology “peaked sharply” in 2014. CMR tracked applications from 2006 to 2014, and until last year 2009 had yielded the highest total—at around 26,000.

Pharma applications filed in China have increased every year between 2004 and 2014, from around 20,000 to 146,000, the report showed. It said that approximately 80,000 applications were filed in the US last year.

The report also looked at generic drugs. It stated that the number of Abbreviated New Drug Applications (ANDAs) submitted by Indian companies that were approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) “declined significantly” between 2012 and 2014.

In 2012, the report said, 207 ANDAs filed by Indian pharma companies were approved by the FDA, compared to 146 in 2014.

Challenges to ANDAs “increased significantly” in 2014 compared to 2013, the report showed, with 40 applications for single molecule drugs and five for combination products being opposed compared to 16 and two respectively.

Finally, the report said, it expects that “over the next seven years, 199 products are predicted to lose exclusivity within the US”. Of these products, 8% are blockbuster drugs, which are defined as those that have generated more than $1 billion in sales, the report explained.

Overall, the report argued that the “data presented ... highlights an industry that demonstrates an ability to respond successfully to various challenges to improve R&D productivity overall”.