Biotech Values

[DewDiligence]

India’s Competition Commission is getting tougher on foreign
companies, including those in the drug/biotech industry.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304070304577395743090390020.html

The Competition Commission of India has begun an investigation of Apple Inc. for marketing the iPhone 4 in India through select mobile-phone operators, an approach that could allegedly harm other companies in the industry, a government official said late Wednesday. It was also revealed this week that the agency is investigating Google Inc. for alleged abusive behavior in online advertising in India. And the commission is targeting a wide range of industries, including cement and tire manufacturing, for alleged price fixing.

…It also wants to scrutinize a wider range of mergers and joint ventures, especially in the pharmaceutical industry, where foreign companies have been active in takeovers.

The Competition Commission started accepting cases in 2009, replacing an essentially toothless antitrust body that had been in place since 1970.

…the commission is expected to get authority soon over small mergers—a move intended to bring more scrutiny to foreign investments in the pharmaceutical sector. Though the country allows foreign companies to own 100% of Indian pharmaceutical ventures, some government officials became concerned after a spate of foreign takeovers of Indian companies in recent years, such as Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Co.'s purchase of a majority interest in Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. and Abbott Laboratories' acquisition of a unit from Piramal Healthcare Ltd. [#msg-50436738].

When you look at the big picture—including such actions as compulsory licenses (#msg-73195444) and an anti-patent legal system (#msg-46626658), India is not the most hospitable place for foreign drug companies to do business.