PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY'S IP PROBLEMS AND PERSPECTIVES IN UKRAINE

Abstract

In the article we are considering the role and the current place of the intellectual property in the pharmaceutical industry in Ukraine. For doing that in the right way the role of IP in the global pharmaceutical industry was considered, within this question was highlighted the main tendency — constantly growing number of patents, and most of them are secondary. And researchers agreed, that the quality of patents for pharmaceuticals nowadays is lower than average, and lower than quality of the patents in other less mature fields. In the same time, pharmaceuticals also a high accounting rate of return worldwide, and in Ukraine as well. Looking on the situation inside the pharmaceutical market in Ukraine, we can claim that it is one of the fastest growing (have the second indicator of growth per year in Europe), and in spite of all challenges Ukrainian economy faces stays one of the most stable and the most promising area. Ukrainian pharma market has a significant export potential, high levels of investment and shows growing presence in foreign markets. All of these characteristics represents the great basis for the industry to grow and develop rapidly and effectively. But, this rapid growth and opportunity of entering European market slowed down by problems when it comes to intellectual property. According to the European Commission annual report on the situation with the protection of intellectual property in third countries, Ukraine is on the list of the biggest copyright infringers. There are legislative gaps in Ukraine in terms of protection of intellectual property rights and producers of original products, no or ineffective legal mechanisms to challenge unfair trademark registration, widespread transit of counterfeit and pirated products to EU markets. Among the industries most affected by copyright infringement, the European Commission's representatives are primarily pharmaceuticals. The only way to move forward and make over the situation is to provide fast changes to the legislation and to the norms of IP regulation. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved the Concept of reforming the state system of legal protection of intellectual property in Ukraine, which defines the conceptual foundations of state policy in the field of intellectual property, including pharmaceuticals. This Concept envisages a number of changes in the system of public administration in the field of IP legal protection, that began to be actively implemented at the end of 2019.