Curbing Patent Monopolies

The competition law is being used against drug patent holders to ensure they don't abuse their market power

- Latha Jishnu

ON THE face it, intellectual property rights which confer monopoly rights on the holder and anti-trust regulations which aim to ensure fair competition would seem to be in direct conflict.

What after all is a patent? It is a right or ownership that allows the patentee for a fixed period to enjoy a monopoly right on his invention by excluding others from making, using or selling it. The competition law, on the other hand, aims to foster competition by ensuring that monopolies do not abuse their dominant position to control the market. Although the two laws would appear to be antithetical to each other, both aim to ensure a balance between opposing interests.