AIMS 2005 / RFG 2005
Bonhomme, Y.; Corbel, P. and Sebai, J. « Différences entre ‘big pharmas’ et ‘biotechs’ – Qu’en disent leurs brevets ? », Proceedings of the 14th International Conference of the AIMS (Association Internationale de Management Stratégique) Angers, France, June 2005, paper selected for the special issue of the Revue française de gestion, vol.31, n°155, March-April 2005, pp.117-133
Abstract:
Over the last two decades, the pharmaceutical industry has undergone major changes. In addition to an increase in the number of agreements between major pharmaceutical companies, it has seen the emergence of a number of young companies based on innovative research technologies, which we tend to refer to loosely as biotechnology companies or 'biotechs'. The way these companies operate seems to us to be different: strong links with fundamental science, numerous cooperation agreements between start-ups and between start-ups and 'traditional' laboratories. We therefore thought it would be interesting to compare the patent citations of the main companies in the two categories. What is the principle behind this method? Each patent includes a certain number of citations intended to reflect the state of the art at the time of publication, on the same model as the bibliographic references in an academic article. Our work consisted in analysing these citations.
This research was carried out in a spirit of exploration of the possibilities and limits of the method. The points to be measured emerged as we went along. For practical reasons, the sample remained relatively limited: 4 laboratories that we can describe as "traditional" and 3 large biotech companies. Our study enabled us to identify the differences between these two types of company:
- Pharmaceutical companies quote companies whose main activity is chemicals more frequently than 'biotechs', which seems to indicate that they have not lost their roots in this sector.
- Biotechnology companies combine a higher average number of citations with a lower rate of self-citation. Taken together, the two indicators may point to greater openness in the research process of these companies.
- Biotech companies are more likely to cite patents filed by universities or fundamental research institutions, confirming the role of partnerships with this type of organisation.
These differences are consistent with what might be expected from the literature on the subject. They provide food for thought on how existing companies can manage a technological revolution such as the emergence of biotechnologies: to what extent do they integrate the methods of new entrants (citing biotechnology companies)? To what extent does this lead them to move away from their original business (quotes from chemical companies)? Do they forge the same kind of links with organisations that produce fundamental knowledge (universities and research institutions)? They also provide food for thought on the potential contributions and limitations of such a method of investigation.
Links:
The paper can be downloaded on the AIMS web site following this link.
The version published in Revue française de gestion is also in open-access in the journal's website.