Merck To Bristol-Myers Face Threats On India Patents (Correct)

Pharmaceutical companies from Merck & Co. (MRK:US) to Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY:US) face fresh threats to protecting their patents in India as a government-appointed panel prepares to evaluate more drugs for local makers to copy.

The panel is looking beyond the cancer treatments it studied last year to areas such as HIV and diabetes, according to two people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. It plans to study more than 20 drugs and recommend the government assign about three so-called compulsory licenses to allow local firms to make low-priced copies in India, they said.

The heightened scrutiny illustrates how emerging markets are becoming harder to navigate for global drugmakers including Pfizer Inc. (PFE:US) and Novartis AG (NOVN), which have struggled to defend their rights on blockbuster therapies in India. The drugmakers are facing a rising threat to their patents as India’s government seeks to make treatments cheaper locally, said Ajit Mahadevan, leader of the life sciences consulting group at Ernst & Young in Mumbai.