It can take decades to develop a new medicine and cost hundreds of millions of dollars. What role will intellectual property (IP) management play in protecting pharmaceutical companies in the future?
Protecting the process
IP rights protect the extensive investment in research and clinical testing that must take place before a new product can enter the market. It can take 10–15 years to develop a new medicine — from the earliest stages of compound discovery until it’s approval for use by the public. The cost of developing a new medicine is also expensive: $2558 million according to analysis conducted by the Tufts Centre for the Study of Drug Development. Capital invested in the pharmaceutical industry is almost all directed at clinical research and drug trials, rather than the manufacture of the final product. Copycats can replicate the manufacturing process for a new drug at a fraction of the cost. The threat of plummeting sales at the end of a long product lifecycle can be enough to discourage pharmaceutical companies from investing in research and development (R&D) in the future.
The pharmaceutical industry relies on innovation to develop new medical treatments. By patenting IP, pharmaceutical companies can protect against the low-cost reproduction of clinical research that undermines the work of IP owners and the substantial contributions of investors.
Finding a place in the market
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