Apr 15, 2020 - Health

Gilead has filed for a trademark on the bottle for a coronavirus drug

Bob Herman

A drawing of an intravenous drug vial with a blue and gray top. — What Gilead wants its remdesivir bottle to look like. Photo: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Gilead Sciences is still testing its potential coronavirus treatment, but here's a sign the company may be expecting good news: It has applied for a trademark for the drug's packaging.

Why it matters: "The reason you make this trademark is because you think you're going to get a product out there soon," said Josh Gerben, a trademark lawyer who first noticed Gilead's application. "This is part of your brand protection."

The big picture: Gilead's drug, remdesivir, is seen as a promising candidate to treat the novel coronavirus, but is still undergoing clinical trials and hasn't been proven to work.

Gilead is slated to release new data on remdesivir data later this month, from randomized trials in China.
Filing for a packaging trademark indicates the company is seriously thinking about this drug's branding and mass distribution.

What they're saying: A Gilead spokesperson says the trademark application "is par for the course" and "entirely consistent with our stated responsibility to plan for a potential regulatory authorization should remdesivir be proven safe and effective."

Gilead has already trademarked the same blue-and-gray bottle top and white labeling in other federally approved drugs.

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Gilead has filed for a trademark on the bottle for a coronavirus drug

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