In the context of the ongoing debate about an innovation crisis in the pharmaceutical industry, we study the success rates of pharmaceutical R&D projects as a measure of innovative productivity. The empirical literature suggests success rates have been decreasing during recent decades. We...

Pharmaceutical drugs are often hailed as the poster child for the proposition that patents foster accelerated rates of innovation. This sentiment stems, in large part, from the belief that pharmaceutical research and development (R&D) entails significant costs and resources. I argue that if the...

This study analyses 1400 research projects of the top 20 R&D-spending pharmaceuticals to identify the determinants of successful research projects. We provide clear evidence that externally sourced projects and projects involving biotechnologies perform better than internal projects and chemical...

The current patent system is muddied with manifest muck. Even those that revere its relevance for R&D intensive sectors such as pharmaceutical drugs, admit of its various failings, particularly when it comes to incentivising research into neglected diseases. A number of alternative innovation...