A year of ups and downs

So 2010 is nearly over and what a year it's been for our industry. We've borne witness to the dramatic changes that have been spurred by the financial crisis of 2008/09: the spate of announcements regarding job losses; the myriad of headlines hinting at or confirming still further M&A activity; the restructuring/diversification/divestiture of underperforming divisions; the rising interest in biologics, generics, outsourcing, the emerging markets; the continued drive to curb counterfeits and improve supply chain security, to name just a few of the recurring trends of 2010.

Fedra Pavlou

For the pharma/biopharma industry, I would define this year as one of refocusing and reprioritising. It will be interesting to see what these changes will yield moving into 2011. It's likely that companies will continue looking to the emerging countries as high growth markets and generics and biologics as potential acquisition targets, for those not already active in those areas. But I do hope that we'll see more investment in R&D in the next 12 months, and perhaps an increase in focus in personalised medicine and stem cell therapy research, seeing as both are hoped to play a greater role in the future of patient care. There's no doubt that originator companies will remain focused on protecting their valuable brands from generic competition, more likely through improved administration routes, so drug delivery and innovative dosage form manufacturers are set to reap the rewards of this trend.

There is one thing that I can guarantee for 2011 and that is that we at PTE will be there to continue reporting on all of the latest trends, innovations and issues that matter to you through our magazine, website, eNewsletters, digital magazine and Twitter feeds. We will also continue listening to you and encouraging you to share your views with your peers through our LinkedIn group which, at the time of writing, now has 1130 members! It's clear that you want to share ideas with like-minded peers so why not join our group, if you haven't already done so, and start sharing (www.pharmtech.com/linkedin).

I would like to thank you for your continued support of PTE in 2010 and I look forward to an eventful 2011.

Fedra Pavlou, Editor-in-Chief