With litigation spanning many countries, the COVID-19 vaccine giants remain engaged in a heated patent war. In the latest twist, Pfizer’s Comirnaty partner BioNTech chalked up a win as the European Patent Office (EPO) snatched back one of Moderna’s patents, ruling it invalid.
The patent in question protects “respiratory virus vaccines,” according to its listing in the European Patent Register. Opposers to the patent include BioNTech and Pfizer, as well as Sanofi, the listing notes.
After quietly withholding millions of Moderna’s newly formulated COVID-19 booster doses because of manufacturing issues at a Catalent factory in Indiana, the United States has reportedly released the shots.
The news comes after unexplained supply problems with the Moderna booster, which was authorized for use by the FDA on Aug. 31, the same day that the regulator also signed off on the COVID-19 booster by Pfizer.
