Posts Tagged ‘pharmaceuticals’

It seems we are in the midst of a noticeable shift in focus from pharma companies towards the emerging markets. As a number of major brands in key therapeutic areas come off-patent, western drug makers are considering growth opportunities that lie outside of North America and Europe, in countries such as India, China, Russia and Brazil.

According to IMS, annual pharmaceutical sales in emerging markets is expected to reach $400bn by 2020, equivalent to current sales in the US and the five top European markets combined. It is also predicted that during the next five years, the market in China has the potential to double in size, becoming the seventh largest pharmaceutical market by 2010.

This makes me wonder what the future will hold for global healthcare PR? Is there a possibility that more and more of our target markets will be based in these “new economies”?

The Financial Times reported last week that Pfizer signed two licensing deals with India-based Aurobindo and Claris, strengthening the company’s position in emerging markets and significantly expanding its portfolio in solid dose and sterile products. Eli Lilly also recently forged a cardiovascular-focused research deal with India’s Zydus Cadila. David Simmons, president and general manager of Pfizer’s Established Products Business Unit, said the company is open to discussions with pharmaceutical companies in emerging markets that offer unique capabilities and product offerings.

Despite their growth potential, emerging markets do present some challenges for global PR. Russia, India, and China, as well as countries in Latin America, have large and extremely varied consumer audiences, different time zones, languages, cultures and media practices. With this in mind, there is an increasing need for global campaigns to be integrated, impactful and delivered in a medium that is both effective and appropriate for the country.

Such need for diversity may change the current dynamic for global campaigns which are mainly run from the US and Europe. Could the next 15 years see a power shift in which countries drive PR campaigns?