Innovation and intellectual property

Sanofi-aventis places innovation and respect of intellectual property at the heart of research, production and marketing.

Developing a new drug is a highly complex, risky and costly enterprise taking on average 15 years. Indeed, of every 10,000 potentially interesting compounds, only one will become a medicinal product. Patents, which ensure legal and economic protection of new drugs, have a theoretical 20-year life. However, the effective patent term is much shorter (8 to 10 years) because it starts as soon as the patent is obtained (before clinical trials).

Subsequently, sanofi-aventis considers defending patents a key issue in ensuring the Group’s sustainability. Patents allow the company to support the cost of drug development and they stimulate innovation making the company able to invest in new research. Finally, since they require competitors to develop different molecules, consequently forcing the pharmaceutical industry to respond specifically to patients needs.

Finally, sanofi-aventis considers defending patents the responsibility of all the stakeholders, and more specifically governments which must act as a guarantor of legal (intellectual property) and economic support (price policy, reimbursements, taxes…) favorable to innovation.