DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has sided with Merck &
Co. (MRK) in a dispute over its patent for the blockbuster asthma
drug Singulair.
The PTO ruled Tuesday that it would end its re-examination of
the Singulair patent, which is due to expire in 2012. It launched
the re-examination in May at the request of Article One Partners
LLC, an online patent-research service that said it uncovered new
information raising questions about the validity of the Singulair
patent, which was issued in the 1990s.
In early September, the office tentatively rejected key claims
in Merck's patent, saying they were "unpatentable" partly because
they were anticipated by another patent. The PTO views
double-patenting as an unjustified extension of patent exclusivity
beyond the term of a patent.
In the latest ruling, the PTO said it withdrew that finding
after a doctor provided reasons why the patented procedure was not
obvious.
Singulair is Merck's best-selling product, with $3.4 billion in
sales for the first nine months of 2009.
Merck's shares rose 1.3%, to $37.75 in after-hours trading. The
stock has gained 23% this year.
-By Kathy Shwiff, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2357;
Kathy.Shwiff@dowjones.com