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What are some of the great patent fights?
One of the largest patent battles in U.S. history resulted when Polaroid sued Eastman Kodak for infringement of its patents covering instant photography cameras. In 1990 Polaroid secured a $925 million judgment against Eastman Kodak.
Biotechnology is not immune to patent disputes. Two major patent court cases involved erythropoietin (EPO) and an enzyme, taq polymerase, used in a widely employed analytical technique. The first case, concluded in 1996, involved Amgen and Genetics Institute. The court ruled that Genetics Institute could not sell its version of EPO in the United States, giving Amgen a legal monopoly over the sale of EPO to kidney dialysis patients. The second case involved Hoffmann-La Roche and Promega Corporation. In this case which is still under appeal at the writing of this document, the court invalidated a patent covering taq polymerase, which is used in the polymerase chain reaction method of amplifying DNA.
Most disputes about patent claims are settled amicably with licensing or cross-licensing agreements. Companies generally prefer to avoid the expense and time that litigation entails.
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