Brazil patent protection ' could this be the end of Pfizer's Viagra there?; Korea rules a against Lipitor patent

According to Progenericos, the Brazilian Association of the Generic Drug Industry, more than 7 million pills of US drug behemoth Pfizer's Viagra (sildenafil) were sold in Brazil in 2007, representing a market value of around $210 million reals ($116.8 million). It is estimated that, with the end of patent protection of Viagra, its current price will decrease from between 35% and 50%, notes a blogger on the IP Tango web site.

The discussion on whether Viagra will turn into a generic drug this year or in 2011 has probably reached its final stage, and a final court ruling by the Superior Justice Court is expected soon.

The issue may be summarized as follows, says the blogger: did the 20-year patent protection for Viagra in Brazil commence on June 20, 1990, when the patent application was originally filed in the UK (and later abandoned), or did it start only on June 7, 1991, when that application was filed at the European Patent Office?