Zeev's Turnips Patch-No Politics (ZEEV)

[AKvetch]

Unfortunately, pill splitting is not patentable, so there are some difficulties capitalizing on it...

Perhaps the process of pill splitting is not patentable, but maybe the device that does it is? According to the following article, a patent for the Viagra pill-splitter has been applied for. (see bolded text below) You've got to give this guy credit for all the free publicity. Following is from BBC.

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/2255035.stm

Friday, 13 September, 2002, 09:09 GMT 10:09 UK
Pensioner markets device to split Viagra pill

Viagra made Pfizer $150bn last year

A thrifty pensioner has come up with a way of boosting his dollars and his sex life.

Carmen Reitano, aged 70, has invented a way to split his Viagra pills.

This saves his cash on the $10 per tablet pills as well as doubling his supply of tablets.

Mr Reitano, of Massachusetts, America, now plans to market his invention, which splits the little blue anti-impotence drug into two equal portions.

He has even set up his own website where he promised visitors that his "Revolutionary V" Viagra splitter" will cut costs by 50%.

We've gotten several hundred orders so far

Carmen Reitano

Mr Reitano said his device is "a Godsend."

He said: "Doctors are generally fully supportive of the pill splitting practice."

But he said finding out how to cut the tablets was not easy.

He said that with its odd shape of a curved top and bottom and its hard shell it had been difficult to cut with any accuracy.

And he said many had previously tried to split the pill.

"It either flies away, breaks unevenly, or it just disintegrates.

"The funniest stories are that it ricochets because you have to hit it so damn hard to cut it and then you've got to find out where it went behind the refrigerator.

"It seemed to me the only way to really develop an efficient way was to customise a device to lock in place and guillotine the pill."

Patent

He hopes to have a patent for his device within a month.

The hand held guillotine, which costs $30, comes in two sizes so it can be used for both the 100 milligramme and 50mg tablets and is on the market via the internet.

Mr Reitano said business so far had been brisk, but not overwhelming.

"I would like to say thousands but we've gotten several hundred orders so far.

"The majority of orders are from the United States, but we have gotten multiple orders from Australia, Japan and China.

"I would suspect that the economics and size of the user base makes this potentially big business."

Business

Pfizer Inc, which have marketed the drug since 1998 say they have no worries about Mr Reitano's device.

Pfizer spokesman Geoff Cook said: "I don't think it would affect the profit structure."

The drug earned Pfizer $1.5billion in sales worldwide last year. Since it was first marketed 100 million prescriptions have been written.