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Venture Capital Funding for Biotech Pharmaceutical Companies in an Integrated Financial Services Market: Regulatory Diversity within the EC

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 February 2009

Brigitte Haar
Affiliation:
Dr. iur., LL.M. (Univ. Chicago), Research Associate, Max Planck Institute.
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Extract

Opening up markets has been one of key endeavors of Ernst-JoachimMestmäcker's endeavors. But what to do if markets have yet to emerge? Biotechnology is one of the key emerging technologies and exemplifies the major problems of innovative industrial activity in Europe. Broadly defined, biotechnology includes “ …any technique that uses living organisms (or parts of organisms) to make or modify products, to improve plants or animals, or to develop microorganisms for specific uses”. In light of its approach on a genetic and molecular level biotechnology is research-intensive and driven by innovation. The Commission's Green Paper on Innovation identified the biotechnology sector as one of dynamic growth and importance for Europe. However, a study by Ernst & Young shows that as of 1997 the United States outperforms all other countries in the biotech sector in terms of its number of companies and employees as well as in terms of sales and research and development expenditures. In addition, all top ten products were developed in the US, and most of them sold by US companies. Thus, Europe lags behind the US in most indicators of economic performance in biotechnology and therefore biotechnology has been identified as an area of prime importance to the future economic development and competitiveness in Europe. For example, in Germany quite successful basic research has been conducted over the years at universities and research institutes. However, these innovative advances in research could not be translated into success on the German pharmaceutical market. What then are the ingredients of the American success in biotechnology?

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Research Article
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Copyright © T.M.C. Asser Press and the Authors 2001

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81 63 & 64 Viet., ch. 48 (1900).

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