Earlier this month, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News published its list of the top 20 best-selling prescription drugs worldwide for 2012 (see "GEN Compiles List of Top Selling Drugs for 2012"). The biotech publication has followed that effort with a list of the top 20 biopharma companies in terms of research and development spending. GEN's latest list, which the journal released on March 12 (see "Top 20 Biopharma R&D Spenders"), was based on figures disclosed by the companies in annual reports and quarterly results press releases. For each company making its list, GEN has provided spending totals for 2008, 2011, and 2012, R&D spending as a percentage of sales for 2008, 2011, and 2012, and the percent change in R&D spending from 2011 to 2012. 2012 R&D spending for the top 20 companies ranged from $1.156 billion to $9.332 billion.
GEN's top 20 rankings are shown below, with GEN's figures for 2012 and 2008 R&D spending. We have also included the number of biopharm patents for which the company was listed as an assignee in 2012. Biopharm patents were determined to be those patents designated as belonging to the following classes (each having an assigned art unit in Technology Center 1600, which encompasses biotechnology and organic chemistry): 260 (Chemistry of Carbon Compounds), 424 (Drug, Bio-Affecting and Body Treating Compositions), 435 (Chemistry: Molecular Biology and Microbiology), 436 (Chemistry: Analytical and Immunological Testing), 504 (Plant Protecting and Regulating Compositions), 506 (Combinatorial Chemistry Technology: Method, Library, Apparatus), 514 (Drug, Bio-Affecting and Body Treating Compositions), 518 (Chemistry: Fischer-Tropsch Processes; or Purification or Recovery of Products Thereof), 530 (Chemistry: Natural Resins or Derivatives; Peptides or Proteins; Lignins or Reaction Products Thereof), 532, 534, 536, 540, 546, 548, 549, 552, 554, 556, 558, 560, 562, 564, 568, 570 (Organic Compounds -- Part of the Class 532-570 Series), 730 (Data Processing: Structural Design, Modeling, Simulation, And Emulation), 800 (Multicellular Living Organisms and Unmodified Parts Thereof and Related Processes), and/or 930 (Peptide or Protein Sequence), 987 (Organic Compounds Containing a Bi, Sb, As, or P Atom or Containing a Metal Atom of the 6th to 8th Group of the Periodic System). Note: The identification of biopharm patents in the table below may be limited in some respects. For example, to the extent that biopharm patents were designated in some other class, such patents will be omitted from the number of biopharm patents. In addition, to the extent that a subsidiary of a given company contributed to that company's patent count and the subsidiary had a distinct name, such patents will be omitted from the number of biopharm patents. Moreover, if the company was not indicated on the face of the patent as an assignee, that patent will be omitted from the number of biopharm patents.
Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News Top 20 Biopharma R&D Spenders for 2012
Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News, "Top 20 Biopharma R&D Spenders," March 12, 2013.
