Price mechanism or pipeline mechanism?

On 16 August 2011, the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice (STJ) held unanimously against the extension of the patent related to Actos(pioglitazone), a drug used to combat type 2 diabetes. This is another victory for the Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial (INPI) against an international laboratory.

The laboratory was seeking to extend the patent from January 2005 to January 2011 using the mechanism established by Brazilian legislation called pipeline. Through the mechanism, the patent would have a year to be made to INPI and worth the time remaining in the country in which it was first filled without extensions. This is the understanding that the STJ has also held in other cases (check here and here).

This sentence holds special implications to the country where local manufacturers receive significant support from its government. A patent expiration would enable local manufacturers to produce and sell Actos at nearly half the price of the original drug.

Source INPI.