Semaglutide is the active ingredient in globally popular drug Ozempic/Wegovy
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“The legal tangle over Novo Nordisk’s weightloss and diabetes drug semaglutide will be a “test case” of sorts, say intellectual property (IP) experts, as more Indian drugmakers wait in the wings to participate in the opportunity involving this product.
Novo Nordisk is locked in a patent infringement battle with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories and OneSource Specialty Pharma – and late last week DRL submitted in Delhi High Court, that it would not sell the product in India, as it did not have a local license to sell. However, it said, it had a license to manufacture and export to countries where Novo did not have a patent.
This is a “test case” for drugmakers looking to participate in the semaglutide opportunity, and an “at risk” move for DRL, IP expert Rajeshwarie Hariharan told businessline, as the case remains open for appeal.
Active ingredient
Semaglutide is the active ingredient in the globally popular drug Ozempic / Wegovy. In fact, Wegovy is poised for launch in India, in a matter of weeks, according to industry-insiders. Other Indian drugmakers who intend to make the product include Cipla, Lupin and Glenmark, to name a few. They will be watching the Novo Nordisk-DRL case, and how it deals with allowing exports before patent protection on the drug expires in the source country, an IP expert said. The entry of Indian generics will bring down the cost of the product steeply, said an industry watcher. Novo Nordisk did not comment on whether it would appeal last week’s order.
One of semaglutide’s patents will lapse in Canada, in January, and a couple of months later in India, said Hariharan, and it remains to be seen where DRL will be able to export.
DRL counsel told the Court that they “reserve their right to export the impugned drug in countries where the plaintiff has not been granted a patent yet.” The counsel for Novo Nordisk, however, told the Court that, according to the Indian Patent Act (1970), “even the export of an infringing product amounts to infringement.”
While that is the case, Hariharan explained, the decision to export is governed by the home country’s (India, in this case) laws, and the destination country decides whether to accept the product based on its own laws.
Published on June 2, 2025