Publications
Publications
- February 2010
- HBS Case Collection
Real Blue? Viagra and Intellectual Property Rights Law in China
By: Regina M. Abrami and Tracy Manty
Abstract
On July 5, 2004, Pfizer's China team received disappointing news. China's patent review board just invalidated the company's existing patent on one of its most successful drugs, Viagra. Making matters worse, a Guangdong-based pharmaceutical company laid claim to Viagra's street name “Wei Ge” (Great Brother), arguing that the term was not a well-known trademark in China. With two lawsuits related to intellectual property rights now pending in China, Pfizer wondered whether trade politics or the rule of law would prevail.
Keywords
Trade; International Relations; Patents; Trademarks; Lawsuits and Litigation; Rights; Business and Government Relations; Pharmaceutical Industry; China
Citation
Abrami, Regina M., and Tracy Manty. "Real Blue? Viagra and Intellectual Property Rights Law in China." Harvard Business School Case 910-409, February 2010.