With the rapid pace of events on the web and the information revolution sparked by the Internet, it’s very easy for the technology industry to think it’s unique: constantly breaking new ground and doing things that nobody has ever done before.
But there are other sorts of business that have already undergone some of the same radical shifts, and have just as great a stake in the future.
Take healthcare, for instance.
We often think of it as a huge, lumbering beast, but in truth, medicine has undergone a series of revolutions in the past 200 years that are at least equal to those we see in technology and information.
The first stirrings of modern chemistry and biology were only just beginning in the 19th century, but by 1967, Christiaan Barnard started transplanting hearts. Similarly, it was only in the 1950s Watson and Crick discovered DNA. Less than 50 years later, the first draft of the human genome was produced. If that’s not rapid, world-shattering change, then what is?
Pharma has also faced other challenges the web industry is only now starting to realize. Products are slow to make, and drugs can take years to design, test and manufacture. Accordingly, R&D spending in pharmaceuticals is very high overall; according to the European Union (PDF), five of the world’s top 10 companies by R&D spend are in drugs or biotechnology (among traditional technology companies, only Microsoft, Nokia and Samsung feature in the list). And it’s a far greater proportion of total turnover (Pfizer spends around one seventh of revenues on research, Apple spends around one dollar on R&D for every 13 it brings in).
And where the planet’s electronics giants spend billions attempting to end piracy and patent infringement, pharmaceutical companies are rapidly adjusting to the fact that they only get 12 years before patent protection ends and other companies can introduce generic drugs. Imagine a situation where Windows 98 was already old enough to be forcibly open-sourced, and you get the idea of how disruptive that might be.
So, what does the pharmaceutical industry have to teach us?
First, be careful. Your property and ideas won’t be yours for long.
Second, while new discoveries are important, revolutions can be reliably predicted, most of the time. From the outside, Barnard’s transplants were a radical shift in surgery. From inside the profession, it was the next obvious step after previous organ transplants.
Third, the way money is being spent will inevitably change. It’s already happening: an issue addressed by the latest VC bulletin from Go4Venture, a London-based advisory group for European entrepreneurs and investors (you can sign up here). Their latest dispatch outlines the state of deal-making in Europe (more of them, but less valuable, as reflected in figures we wrote about last month), and they also point out Europe’s technology financing system is undergoing a significant shift:
[there is a] major structural change in European venture capital financing where corporates will play a more prominent role going forward. Corporates are facing a lasting ex-growth market environment (courtesy of debt-laden Western economies) and realise that internal R&D is rather expensive and just cannot cover the whole front of innovation.
For corporates, investing in start-ups has the added advantage of encouraging a more entrepreneurial culture inside and creating a stream of acquisition opportunities.
Pharma has been there before, in an early move precipitated by proprietary drugs coming off patent, and we are now seeing the pharma model spreading to other IP-driven sectors.
Spending more of the R&D budget on other companies doesn’t just mean acquisition, of course — although the startup world is very familiar with the process and it’s clearly the most common option. Just yesterday, Google spent $60 million making the slightly odd move to buy British price comparison website BeatThatQuote. It could also mean more early investment in small companies, like the $100,000 Microsoft is putting into Moscow-based anti-piracy startup Pirate Pay.
But what it does mean is, ultimately, the growth in the number of deals we’re seeing is going to get faster, and there will be more opportunities for innovative startups and smart entrepreneurs. Twinned with the aggressive, high valuation investing strategy of a company like Russia’s Digital Sky Technologies, it seems more likely than not we’ll see things explode, in Europe and elsewhere, over the next year or two.
Related content from GigaOM Pro (subscription req’d):
- A 2011 NewNet Forecast
- A 2011 Mobile Forecast
- A 2011 Connected Consumer Forecast
Related Posts
- The Gravity Of The Situation – Now With Natalie Portman UPDATE The Hollywood Reporter… reports that Jonas Cuaron has had an untitled pitch picked by by Warner Bros, even though his previous big screenplay Gravity...
- Fox Like Damon Lindelof’s New Alien Prequel Script, Natalie Portman, Being Frugal Joe Sommers will take the first half of this post, which I’ll put in grey. Then I’ll take the second.
It would seem reports of... - What Part Do Ben Affleck And Natalie Portman Have To Play In The Next Superman Movie? We learned last night that Darren Aronofsky was one of the many potential options as to who might be handed control of Warner Bros....
- Tom Tykwer And The Wachowskis To Direct Cloud Atlas Together, Natalie Portman Expects A Small Role I don’t know long it would take for copies of Entertainment Weekly to end up on the shelves of a British Borders but it...
- Trailer And Poster For Aronofsky’s Black Swan With Natalie Portman
The trailer for Black Swan reveals that Darren Aronofsky is sticking with the loose-but-punchy aesthetic we saw in The Wrestler, rather than the more...
BenchCraft, LLC announced that it's going to debut its Concert Series, a whole new line of recliners with an integrated sound technique, at Big Stage Industry on October 17-22, 2009. Concert Series recliners attribute two built-in stereo speakers plus a subwoofer designed specially to produce a total assortment of sound. It's got tactile motors which could either vibrate with the sound or be made use of independently as being a massage strategy, and separate controls that allow for for particular person changes to be developed for the volume, bass/treble, and also the tactile/massage feature. The system, that will have a beginning selling price position of $699, will even consist of a mini audio jack so customers can connect to their a variety of audio sources (i.e. iPods, MP3 gamers, cell phones, etc.). To that finish, Sinning noted that Berkline may also be introducing in find motion
bench craft company reviews
furniture its new eCoupled technologies option--a wireless charging station for electronic units this includes cell phones, MP3 players, and laptops. Developed by Fulton Innovation, it eliminates the desire for electrical power cords by setting up an electromagnetic conduit mixed with an intelligent control procedure that always monitors electrical power movement so diverse products from several manufactures can charge simultaneously. eCoupled technological know-how is additionally safe and sound for electronic gadgets considering that it allows for only the amount of electrical power
bench craft company reviews
required to help keep a unit at peak vitality levels, so there may be no possibility of overcharging. Although the quantity of products compatible with this technology is minimal, Berkline expects that additional and more brand names will move toward incorporating the capability to connect to the eCoupled purpose
The Bench Craft Company provides no excuses for that hard do the job and perseverance that they commit on their own to in order to sustain themselves because the leader in nationwide onsite golf program house
bench craft company reviews
marketing. No excuses for providing their consumers together with the most complete protection for his or her bench craft company reviews advertising dollar whether or not it be locally or nationwide. No excuses for providing golf program properties probably the most seamless system for producing further revenue inside most non-intrusive way, even though enhancing the high-quality of your services plus the encounter of their golfers on their property. Bench Craft is committed to getting the best plus the largest at what they do, promoting on golf course bench craft company reviews venues.
In an age where no one
bench craft company reviews
wishes to take obligation for something, Bench Craft helps make by itself totally responsible for the good results of their advertising consumers, that is why their customers and properly as Bench Craft constantly knowledge wholesome development charges and profit margins. A organisation are unable to be any more
bench craft company reviews
successful than their purchaser, so it is actually target of Bench Craft to generate specific that any client gets the best doable venue for presenting their potential customers
bench craft company reviews
programs and solutions, regardless of whether it be locally or nationally. This dedication to high-quality is what sets Bench Craft apart from its competition, and dollar for dollar helps make its promoting merchandise a number of the most priceless while in the marketplace.
The golf courses bench craft company reviews that Bench Craft Company works in concert with, get services and products at no cost. Bench Craft Company revenue team specifically funds this method for every golf program by obtaining sponsors for every product or service. Neighborhood vendors and gamers from the neighborhood acquire sponsorship priority and golf program management will work closely with Bench Craft to identify potential sponsors. Bench Craft’s hugely flourishing
bench craft company reviews
procedure provides golf programs a free of cost of cost choice that also eliminates expenses subsequently of style and design alterations, course modifications, theft and vandalism.
As being a definite additional advantage, every program is guarded under a $3,000,000 liability policy. The organization can accommodate practically every single golf course. At the same time, Bench Craft Company works together with all branches of the Armed Forces, along with state, county and city golf programs. This selection of golf courses offers Bench Craft’s clientele together with the most all-inclusive coverage of golf course properties in the U.s..
The forward
bench craft company reviews
considering Visionaries at Bench Craft Company formulated a process that garners the interest and participation of not just its individual income workers, but the sponsors, golf program management as well as the membership and patrons. There’s only one Bench Craft Company, really don't fall for rip off plots by imposters running a rip-off.
bench craft company reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment