As pharma has pivoted towards biologics with higher barriers to competition, traditional drug lifecycles and patent cliffs have become a thing of the past. Older products can be enduringly lucrative, giving rise to concentrated investment in single pipeline-in-a-pill assets. In turn, this creates added incentives towards fast-follower approaches to R&D. Added to signs of biosimilar maturity, biopharma is entering a new period of intense competition from new sources, requiring a change in approach to portfolio strategy and lifecycle management.
In recent years, a subtle change in narrative has emerged concerning portfolio strategy. Drug company executives are increasingly leading with...