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European Pharmaceutical Contractor
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On an international stage, the enormous sums invested in the research and development of new drugs have put pharmaceutical companies in pole position when it comes to investing in patent protection. But the monopoly on production afforded by patents is only available for 20 years, and the falling revenues faced by giants such as Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merek and AstraZeneca with the expiry of several of their key patents in 2002, highlights a problem that is only going to get worse for pharmaceutical companies, both large and small. Pharmaceutical companies need to focus on brand building and brand values whilst their products have a patent monopoly to help develop stable, long-term demand and foster consumer trust and loyalty. If they can achieve this, it will go some way to keeping competition from generic products at bay.
Pharmaceutical companies have long recognised that patents equal profits. A well-known example of this is the patent held by GlaxoSmithKline for Zantac, the anti-ulcer drug, which was worth £2-3 million in profit to GSK for each day that they held it. For every Zantac, though, there are many products that companies have invested millions in developing that do not make it to the market.
That they can afford to write off R&D costs for failed drugs is a testament to the income that can be generated by successful products, and it also explains why pharma companies have traditionally relied so heavily on patent protection. Patent protection gives them a 20-year uninterrupted monopoly in which to market and sell a drug, during which time they can try to patent new applications and uses for a drug so as to extend the period of protection.
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