Given the high device and procedure success rates in total joint replacement and the conservative nature of surgeons generally, the orthopedics industry has seen little true breakthrough technology over the past 20 years, technology that has significantly disrupted the competitive landscape. Stryker Corp.’s bid to acquire surgical robotics maker MAKO Surgical Corp. could, however, do exactly that. [See Deal] Stryker’s adoption of MAKO’s RIO (Robotic-arm Interactive Orthopedic) system could give the global medical supplier a competitive edge over other orthopedic implant makers if the company can win converts to robotic surgery by leveraging its own experience in selling capital equipment.
Indeed, with a $1.65 billion price tag, MAKO better be a difference maker for the aggressively acquisitive Stryker. But even...