Medicine Proposal

By applying the concept of grouping within nanotechnology companies to our proposal on reducing the cost of patent of drugs, we can bring about the following benefits which can propel Singapore's economy:

1. Sharing of knowledge between companies to shorten the period of patent of medical drugs

2. Huge demand for medical drugs

3. Attraction for foreign investment

The grouping of companies allows them to share knowledge so as to have more resources for Research & Development(R&D). One example will be the introduction of a policy which is to address (1) data sharing procedures, (2) data access principles, (3) intellectual property, and (4) issues regarding the protection of research participants through all phases of genome-wide association studies (GWAS).The goal of this policy is to maximize the availability of resources which facilitates research and enables medical science to better address the health

needs of people based on their individual genetic information.(GWAS, 2007) Since the companies invest huge funds in drug discovery, they extend the period of patent so as to avoid incurring losses and protect their intellectual property. Hence, they pass down the high costs to consumers by selling the drugs at a high price.(SR146, 2008) Since the cost of Research & Development(R&D) is the main factor that causes the period of patent to be relatively long, a reduction in the cost of investments in R&D through the policy will shorten the patent term for pharmaceutical drugs. When the period of the patent is shortened, it will directly lead to a decrease in the price of pharmaceutical drugs. According to the law of demand, a decrease in the price of a good will lead to an increase in the quantity demanded of the good, ceteris paribus.

Another example can be seen from the collaboration between consumer electronics giant Sony and Ericsson, the market leader in network infrastructure and telecoms to form Sony Ericsson in October 2001. This collaboration has brought about benefits to consumers and increase the profits earned by these two large firms. Now, there are over 7500 employees contributing to the development of Sony Ericsson's products over 40 countries across the map. Through engagement in R&D operations, and the global management to the regional centres, Sony