Patents and the UK pharmaceutical industry between 1945 and the 1970s
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 14800282 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Judy Slinn (Oxford Brookes University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2008 |
| Volume | 24 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 191-205 |
| Publication date | 2008-06-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | History and Technology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0734-1512 • E-ISSN: 1477-2620 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/07341510701810963 |
| OpenAlex | W2034030470 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 6 |
The years following the end of World War II saw a rapid increase in the rate of the introduction of new products by the pharmaceutical industry in Europe and North America. Patenting played an increasingly significant role in the industry and the companies, which were investing heavily in research, needed to develop strategies of appropriation to ensure that they recouped the rewards of innovation. This paper explores the use of patents by UK companies during the therapeutic revolution and beyond. It suggests that within a framework of competition, the use of patents and the practice of licensing, combined with the growing complexity of products led to the creation of networks of cross‐licensing, often linked to a variety of collaborative arrangements. In this process, the companies created corporate capabilities which contributed to their growth and international development within the period covered by the paper. By the 1960s, however, the nature of licensing had changed but some collaborative arrangements and the capabilities they created continued to play a significant role in the further international development of the industry. From the late 1970s, as new drugs became more elusive and expensive, as well taking much longer to get into the market, patents for the much sought after ‘blockbuster’ drugs were eagerly pursued. Patents, licensing and various forms of collaboration assumed a new significance in the approaches made by the pharmaceutical corporations to the innovative discoveries of the biotechnology industry in the last two decades of the century
Appropriation · Business · Industrial organization · International trade · Pharmaceutical industry · Historical Medical Research and Treatments · History of Medical Practice · Medical History and Innovations · Biotechnology · Marketing
| Citations per year | 0.33 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2017 - 2018 (2) |
| Highly cited | No |