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Scientific American releases its 4th Annual Worldview Report and Scorecard at the BIO International Convention in Boston

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The 4th Annual Scientific American Worldview Report and Scorecard &ndash; the most comprehensive country-by-country analysis of biotechnology &ndash; reveals the parameters essential for building a successful biotechnology hub in today&rsquo;s increasingly global industry.</p>

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Scientific American Contact:
Rachel Scheer
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E: r.scheer@us.nature.com


Scientific American Worldview Report Unveils Emerging Markets – Beyond the BRICs – Poised to Lead the Global Biotechnology Industry

Scientific American releases its 4th Annual Worldview Report and Scorecard at the BIO International Convention in Boston

Washington, DC and New York, NY, [June 20, 2012] – The 4th Annual Scientific American Worldview Report and Scorecard – the most comprehensive country-by-country analysis of biotechnology – reveals the parameters essential for building a successful biotechnology hub in today’s increasingly global industry.

Scientific American released the report and data set during a Super Session – International Leaders Share Their Worldview: Scientific American’s Regional Bio-Innovation Scorecard – at the BIO International Convention. The session examined the future of innovation and key drivers for growth of the global industry and highlighted perspectives on how countries and regions can invest, invent and innovate to dominate the future of the sector. Speakers included Dr. Yücel Altunbasak, President TUBITAK, Turkey; The Honourable Naledi Pandor, Minister of Science & Technology South Africa; and Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Chairman & Managing Director Biocon Ltd. Fareed Zakaria, CNN Host, Editor-at-Large TIME Magazine, moderated the session.

Perhaps most notably, market capitalization data from the United States plus a series of other countries—including  Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Russia and others—in the Worldview Report show signs of economic recovery. Moroever, these indicators could reveal fertile countries for expanding the biotechnology industry.

This year, Scientific American has expanded the list to include 50 countries, adding Lativa and Taiwan. Moreover, the Scorecard features a collection of metrics that assess a country’s overall success in biotechnology, as well as capabilities in particular areas of the field in general. This year, Scientific American has added a new category to the Scorecard – Policy and Stability – in addition to the five fundamental categories of Intellectual Property (IP), Enterprise Support, Intensity, Education/Workforce and Foundations. In addition, the report closely examines the protection of IP and its impact on innovation in biotechnology and highlights data in new areas, including collaboration and medical tourism, which shows the interactivity of numerous elements related to a country’s capabilities for encouraging innovation in biotechnology.

Leading the list is the U.S., although the margin of this leadership drops especially low this year and it does not lead in all categories. In fact, the U.S. only places first in one category, intellectual property (IP), and there is considerable room for improvement in other areas. For example, the U.S. places 20th in Policy and Stability (a new category this year), and ranks 6th in Education/Workforce, but receives a relatively low score in the number of post-secondary science graduates per capita.

The remaining top ten countries ranked in the Scorecard include Denmark, Singapore, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia. The top five countries are closely ranked, emphasizing that even the leading countries must continue to support the industry in order to maintain their standings as leaders in this field.

This year’s report focuses on smaller companies and countries with less mature biotechnology industries. The breadth of biotechnology and its ongoing expansion makes it possible for a wide range of players to compete, especially ones who make the most of their inherent capabilities, such as natural resources, or team up with other players around the world.

A wide range of elements must be considered—both gross and relative—to assess a country’s capabilities in biotechnology, and these metrics must adapt over time. Excelling in specific areas, such as education, IP or overall government support, can lift even unexpected countries into international prominence. Likewise, capabilities in the same categories impact larger players’ dominance in the global industry as well.

In addition to the areas highlighted in the Scorecard, Scientific American cites industry “trailblazers” as having a significant impact on the growth and development of the industry within a particular country or region. This year’s trailblazers include Lee Hood, an academic biologist; Richard Pops, CEO of Alkermes; and Terry McGuire, a venture capitalist. As the report emphasizes, “Although they followed different paths to make their contributions, they shared an adventure in the growth of an industry through tenacity, courage, candor, patience, goodwill and a positive attitude. Most of all, they share a passion to change the world.”

The 4th Annual Scientific American Worldview Report and Scorecard can be accessed online at http://saworldview.com.


About BIO

BIO represents more than 1,100 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of innovative healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the BIO International Convention, the world's largest gathering of the biotechnology industry, along with industry-leading investor and partnering meetings held around the world. BIO produces BIOtechNOW <http://biotech-now.org/> , a multiblog platform and monthly newsletter that aims to create an online biotech community where the the industry can connect to discuss the latest news. Subscribe to BIOtechNOW. <http://biotech-now.org/subscribe>

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About Scientific American

Scientific American is at the heart of Nature Publishing Group's consumer media division, meeting the needs of the general public. Founded in 1845, Scientific American is the longest continuously published magazine in the U.S. and is the leading authoritative publication for science in the general media. Together with ScientificAmerican.com and 14 local language editions around the world, it reaches over five million consumers and scientists. Other titles include Scientific American Mind and Spektrum der Wissenschaft in Germany. Scientific American won a 2011 National Magazine Award for General Excellence. For more information, please visit www.ScientificAmerican.com<http://www.ScientificAmerican.com> <http://www.scientificamerican.com/> .



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