Specialty pharmaceutical companies focus the majority of their efforts upon one or two therapeutic areas that are served by specialized physicians. Their traditional mode of operation is to acquire under-promoted branded products from Big Pharma companies that are generating lower sales and significantly increase revenues through the application of targeted marketing and promotional activities. However, the dynamics of the industry are changing. Rising costs for in-licensing and acquiring late stage/approved products have driven companies to develop products internally in order to remain competitive.

‘The Top Ten Specialty Pharmaceutical Companies’ is a new report published by Business Insights that explores the global competitive landscape of the specialty pharmaceutical industry. The latest key trends and evolving business models in the specialty pharmaceutical market are identified and the leading companies in this sector are profiled in detail. For each of the top ten specialty pharma companies, this report provides a detailed examination of geographic and therapeutic focus, major currently marketed products and growth strategies in the form of key acquisitions and divestments. The opportunities and threats facing each of these leading players are also assessed.

Discover the key trends and growth drivers of the specialty pharma market, compare the strategies and perfomance of the top ten companies and evaluate their future prospects with this new report...

Some key findings from this report

• The global specialty pharma market reached an overall value of $61.6bn in 2007, an increase of 15.7% from 2006. The ten leading companies represented 36.4% of the total market in 2007.

• Servier currently leads the worldwide specialty pharma industry. The company had a market share of 7.0% in 2007, representing sales of $4.3bn, an increase of 20.3% over 2006.

• Gilead intend to maintain its current dominance in the HIV/AIDS treatment market by accelerating the discovery, development and marketing of antiretroviral drugs and by establishing a foothold in the economies of emerging markets.

• Many drug delivery companies are changing focus to become specialty pharma companies, by using their drug delivery technologies to develop improved formulations of existing molecules. Alza was the first drug delivery company to complete this transition.

• Cephalon has a strong late-stage pipeline and anticipates several product approvals and launches during 2008–10. The company expects four FDA approvals within its oncology and pain management franchises in 2008, in addition to the launch of two new onclogy products before 2010.


Top reasons to order your copy today
• Identify the market dynamics of the global specialty pharma industry over the 2006-07 period, understand the potential benefits of emerging business models and identify the latest industrial trends across the UK, Japan, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the US.

• Evaluate the performance and strategies of the top 10 players in the global specialty pharma market with this report’s examination of the geographic and therapeutic focus and currently marketed product portfolios of Servier, Gilead, Forest, Shire, Biogen Idec, Cephalon, Sepracor, Lundbeck, Endo Pharma and CSL.

• Assess the future prospects of the top ten specialty pharma companies with this report’s analysis of each firm’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunties and threats, in addition to an examination of growth strategies via product acquistions and divestments.

• Measure the progress of leading specialty pharma companies outside of the top ten by anlaysing the portfolios and therapeutic/geographic focus of Covidien, Allergan, ONO, Genzyme, Gruenenthal, Warner Chilcott, Ferring, Stiefel Labs, Bracco and Leo Pharma.

Key issues examined in this report
• Genericization of specialty products. Specialty pharma products with orphan drug status become vulnerable to genericization once this status has expired. Biogenerics are increasing as a result of favourable EU legislation.

• Cannibalization of product sales. Intense competition has forced specialty pharma companies to reformulate or recombine their products at a high rate. This ‘cannibalization’ has resulted in a shortening of individual product lifecycles.

• Lack of incentives in Europe. Pricing and reimbursement pressures in Europe have created greater boundaries to innovation, leading to fewer undervalued late-stage products. As a result, traditional specialty companies are likely to face future difficulties in this region.

• CNS treatments dominate the specialty sector. CNS is the largest therapeutic area for the leading specialty pharma companies, with half of the top ten companies focused on CNS and neurology treatments.

Your questions answered
• How fast is the global market for specialty pharmaceutical treatments expanding?

• What are the trends in the global specialty pharmaceutical market?

• Who are the top 10 players in the industry and how much of the market do they control?

• Which growth strategies have proven most effective?

• Which business models have been adopted by leading companies to gain competitive advantage and enhance market share?

• What are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunties and threats facing each of the top 10 players?

• Where are the most exciting growth opportunities for leading specialty pharmaceutical companies?