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The Impact of Higher Standards in Patent Protection for Pharmaceutical Industries under the TRIPS Agreement – A Comparative Study of China and India

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  • Xuan Li

Abstract

A comparative study is undertaken that explores Chinese and Indian pharmaceutical industries under different patent regimes. It is found that relative to India, which had implemented process patent protection until 2005, China with a product patent regime since 1993 suffers from both lower drug accessibility and availability (the latter is a missing parameter in the literature). Also, China lags behind in both lower R&D investment and patents filed by Chinese nationals. Based on these findings and associated legal interpretation, we conclude that higher patent protection in China generates negative impacts on the pharmaceutical industries. Thus, governments should utilise TRIPS flexibilities and other regimes such as price control to offset the anticompetitive effect in designing patent policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Xuan Li, 2008. "The Impact of Higher Standards in Patent Protection for Pharmaceutical Industries under the TRIPS Agreement – A Comparative Study of China and India," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(10), pages 1367-1382, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:worlde:v:31:y:2008:i:10:p:1367-1382
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9701.2008.01133.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Margaret K. Kyle & Anita M. McGahan, 2012. "Investments in Pharmaceuticals Before and After TRIPS," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 94(4), pages 1157-1172, November.
    2. Kristin Brandl & Izzet Darendeli & Ram Mudambi, 2019. "Foreign actors and intellectual property protection regulations in developing countries," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 50(5), pages 826-846, July.
    3. Schüren Verena, 2013. "What a difference a state makes: pharmaceutical innovation after the TRIPs agreement," Business and Politics, De Gruyter, vol. 15(2), pages 217-243, August.
    4. Khadija Straaten & Niccolò Pisani & Ans Kolk, 2020. "Unraveling the MNE wage premium," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 51(9), pages 1355-1390, December.
    5. Jung Kwan Kim & Ram Mudambi, 2020. "An ecosystem-based analysis of design innovation infringements: South Korea and China in the global tire industry," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 3(1), pages 38-57, March.

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