Moderna’s Suit Against Pfizer/BioNTech Is About More Than Money

Moderna is seeking financial compensation for Comirnaty in its patent infringement suit, but it seems especially keen to assert IP rights over what could become an even more valuable platform technology.

Moderna is filing a patent infringement suit against Pfizer/BioNTech over technology used in its Spikevax vaccine • Source: Shutterstock

Moderna, Inc. hasn’t disclosed how much it hopes Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE will pay if it wins its patent infringement suit accusing them of copying the messenger RNA (mRNA) technology it used to develop Spikevax in their own COVID-19 vaccine, Comirnaty. But it appears less interested in giving Spikevax a leg up on the market than in ensuring it maintains control over the underlying intellectual property fueling its rapidly expanding pipeline – as well as BioNTech’s.

Moderna announced on 26 August that it was filing patent infringement suits against Pfizer and BioNTech in the US District...