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Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

bbc.co.uk

1–10 of 178 posts

Re: Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

#3
How would a "waiver" work? Last I understood about law, a country can't take away the rights of companies (or people) without their consent or modifying the patent laws.

Or is this a matter where because it has to do with overseas patent protection, the US could decline to enforce certain agreements?

And don't companies have patent protection in every country they seek to do business anyway?

Re: Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

#4

How would a "waiver" work? Last I understood about law, a country can't take away the rights of companies (or people) without their consent or modifying the patent laws. Or is this a matter where because it has to do with overseas patent protection, the US could decline to enforce certain agreements? And don't companies have patent protection in every country they seek to do business anyway?

NIH (a US government run institution) holds the main patents on mRNA technology.

Re: Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

#5

How would a "waiver" work? Last I understood about law, a country can't take away the rights of companies (or people) without their consent or modifying the patent laws. Or is this a matter where because it has to do with overseas patent protection, the US could decline to enforce certain agreements? And don't companies have patent protection in every country they seek to do business anyway?

Doesn't really matter, waiver or not. It's not like most industries or people can go about making this vaccines themselves. That's why I sometimes laugh about these folks that what to invalidate patents and have everything in the open. If Toyota posted schematics of their trucks online, do you think, you and I could build one without throwing resources, time, and money down a toilet? I would have better luck growing my own lettuce and raising my own cows to beat McDonald's at the hamburger game.

Re: Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

#6
I feel like this is killing the goose that laid the golden egg. The Covid vaccines are one of the greatest success stories of modern medicine ever, and are literally worth trillions.

I want the companies and investors in the pharmaceuticals that have made these to become fabulously wealthy as an incentive for companies to invest in the capabilities to produce these.

I want creating a successful vaccine to be a bigger deal economically than creating a worldwide social network.

Who is doing a better job of increasing human well-being, Facebook or Moderna?

The stock of these companies dropped on this announcement. Long term this kind of patent waiver will drive investment and at some level smart people from these companies.

Re: Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

#7

How would a "waiver" work? Last I understood about law, a country can't take away the rights of companies (or people) without their consent or modifying the patent laws. Or is this a matter where because it has to do with overseas patent protection, the US could decline to enforce certain agreements? And don't companies have patent protection in every country they seek to do business anyway?

Doesn't really matter, waiver or not. It's not like most industries or people can go about making this vaccines themselves. That's why I sometimes laugh about these folks that what to invalidate patents and have everything in the open. If Toyota posted schematics of their trucks online, do you think, you and I could build one without throwing resources, time, and money down a toilet? I would have better luck growing…

Cool. So then these companies should have nothing to fear.

Re: Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

#8

I feel like this is killing the goose that laid the golden egg. The Covid vaccines are one of the greatest success stories of modern medicine ever, and are literally worth trillions. I want the companies and investors in the pharmaceuticals that have made these to become fabulously wealthy as an incentive for companies to invest in the capabilities to produce these. I want creating a successful vaccine to be a bigger…

I absolutely agree. What confuses me is that removing patent protection strikes me as the strongest weapon in the arsenal. Before doing that, wouldn't it be possible to enforce sublicensing or other such contracts that would allow third party manufacturers to produce the vaccine whilst still ensuring revenue for its patent holders?

Re: Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

#9
post #4

How would a "waiver" work? Last I understood about law, a country can't take away the rights of companies (or people) without their consent or modifying the patent laws. Or is this a matter where because it has to do with overseas patent protection, the US could decline to enforce certain agreements? And don't companies have patent protection in every country they seek to do business anyway?

NIH (a US government run institution) holds the main patents on mRNA technology.

No, the NIH helped with the spike protein sequence. There are plenty of other parents needed to make the actual vaccine.

Re: Covid: US backs waiver on vaccine intellectual property

#10

How would a "waiver" work? Last I understood about law, a country can't take away the rights of companies (or people) without their consent or modifying the patent laws. Or is this a matter where because it has to do with overseas patent protection, the US could decline to enforce certain agreements? And don't companies have patent protection in every country they seek to do business anyway?

Doesn't really matter, waiver or not. It's not like most industries or people can go about making this vaccines themselves. That's why I sometimes laugh about these folks that what to invalidate patents and have everything in the open. If Toyota posted schematics of their trucks online, do you think, you and I could build one without throwing resources, time, and money down a toilet? I would have better luck growing…

India is manufacturing AstraZeneca and other vaccines for export. Prior pandemic India manufactured 2.3 billion vaccines annually. Patent fees are big part of expenses.

RNA based experiments are doable in most university labs. It is 2021.

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