Six Chinese detained in France for suspected IPR infringements
10:16 GMT, Oct 19, 2006

Shanghai. October 19. INTERFAX-CHINA - Six Chinese from three
pharmaceutical companies have been detained in France in connection with
counterfeit pharmaceutical products.

Bulk medicine they exhibited at the CPHI European pharmaceutical
ingredients conference in Paris last week is suspected to have infringed
the Intellectual Property Right (IPR) of Rimonabant.
Rimonabant is a proprietorary drug that helps with weight loss, lipids,
and smoking cessation, and was developed by Sanofi-Aventis, the world's
third largest pharmaceutical Group.

According to state media, from October 3 to October 5, Sanofi-Aventis
Group alleged that the bulk drug, exhibited by three Chinese companies,
infringed the IPR of their patent drug, Rimonabant. The ministry of
interior affairs of France (Ministиre de l'Intйrieur ) then launched an
investigation.

The Ministry of Commerce (MoC), the Embassy of China in France and the
China Chamber of Commerce of Medicines & Health Products Importers &
Exporters (CCCMHPIE) are all involved in the case.

"We haven't encountered similar situations in the past," an exhibition
department official with the CCCMHPIE said when contacted by Interfax.
As the organizing body for Chinese companies to attend the international
exhibitions, CCCMHPIE said it usually asks the attending companies to
write a letter of guarantee to ensure that their products doesn't
infringe any IPR. But this time, it didn't.

"We strongly oppose the patent infringement, but as the organizer, it is
impossible for us to guarantee all the attending enterprises have no
problems regarding this field, " she said, adding, "the investigation is
still being conducted, and her the involved companies have infringed the
IPRs of Sanofi-Aventis is still unclear."

The three involved companies, according to the CCCMHPIE are small and
medium sized pharmaceutical trading companies in South China's Jiangsu
Province, but detailed information about these companies are refused to
be disclosed.

When the six will be sent back to China is still unclear, Ningyun, the
chief of the legal affair department with the CCCMHPIE, told Interfax.
"But it is certain that they will have to face the trial in France, "
Guan added.

Rimonabant was just launched in market this year, and it was touted as a
blockbuster that could net six billion dollars in annual sales by 2010.

LL