Brands & Branding and Private Labels Case Study

GlaxoSmithKline’s Rush for Branded Generic Markets: Will it be a Success?

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Abstract:
The pharmaceutical industry had been one of the mature and intense knowledge driven industry's that experienced a continuous state of change. The industry was dotted with some major mergers and acquisitions over the years and depicted a consolidation trend. Following the industry's history of mergers and acquisitions, GlaxoSmithKline Plc, one of the largest research-based pharmaceuticals and health care companies took a bold step on 23 July 2008 and entered into branded generics via an alliance with South Africa's Aspen Pharmacare Holdings, a major supplier of branded and generic pharmaceutical drugs. This move marked a sign of GlaxoSmithKline's significant shift in its focus from patented drugs in the US and Europe to branded generic drugs for emerging markets, and was termed as 'transformational agreement'. This case focuses on the challenges and opportunities that GlaxoSmithKline would foresee in its diversification strategy.

Pedagogical Objectives:

• To examine and discuss the dynamics of the global pharmaceutical industry.
• To discuss and analyse GlaxoSmithKline's diversification strategy into generics.
• To analyse the challenges ahead of GlaxoSmithKline for its branded generics in emerging markets.

Keywords :  GlaxoSmithKline, Aspen, Research and development (R&D), Alliance, Generic drugs, Branded drugs, Emerging markets, Pharmaceutical industry, Patented drugs, Federal Drug Administration (FDA), Western market, Blockbuster drugs, Intellectual property, Regulatory pressure