GSK (GSK.L), a prominent British biopharmaceutical company, filed a lawsuit against Pfizer (PFE.N) in a U.S. court on Wednesday, claiming that Pfizer’s Abrysvo respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine infringes on the patent rights of GSK’s competing RSV vaccine Arexvy.
In the case filed in federal court in Delaware, GSK claimed that New York-based Pfizer’s vaccine violated four of its patents relating to the antigen its shots employ to treat the respiratory condition.
In a statement, Pfizer stated that it is “confident in its intellectual property position” and will “strongly defend” its ability to provide patients with Abrysvo.
In May, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave both vaccines the go-ahead for use in individuals over the age of 60. They are the first vaccines authorized to prevent RSV, which, according to government estimates, kills over 14,000 persons 65 and older in the United States every year.
The RSV vaccine business, which might reach $10 billion by 2030, is hotly contested by Pfizer and GSK. The vaccines are a part of both businesses’ strategy to replace dated medications that less expensive generic alternatives will challenge.
According to a GSK spokesman, intellectual property rights are the “foundation of research-based companies’ ability to drive innovation,” and the lawsuit shouldn’t prevent GSK from introducing Arexvy.
Pfizer started developing its RSV program as early as 2013, at least seven years after GSK, according to GSK’s lawsuit. According to the lawsuit, Pfizer has been contesting the legality of European versions of GSK’s patents since at least 2019, at which point it became aware of GSK’s patented technologies.
