on Pharma and the Because Effect

One of the joys (there aren’t too many of them) of being incarcerated in hospital depleted of energy, is the ability to read yesterday’s papers at leisure.

In yesterday’s FT there was an article on the difference in strategy between two major Indian Pharma companies, Dr Reddy’s and Ranbaxy.

Dr Reddy has been buying up component manufacturers and will partner and cooperate with anyone. As the FT article says, “this practice of supplying and partnering with other drug companies distinguishes it from rivals”.

Ranbaxy, on the other hand, “aggressively targets big drug companies with patent lawsuits.”

Intriguing. If we have more Pfizer-like instances, maybe the investors will insist on pooling of R&D risk. And all Pharma will be generic as the industry becomes coopetitive.

So how will they differentiate? How often do you accuse drug companies of being customer-friendly?

One way of differentiating: ethical pricing and distribution.

I know nothing about Pharma, but I know a little about what happens when something proprietary becomes commodity. So I shall continue to watch this space.