'We Are Currently Working With Almost All Major Pharma Companies In Asia Pacific'

Sylvia Hii, Founder & VP – Marketing, Digital A Plus Group of Companies in an interaction with Usha Sharma, elaborates on the immense opportunities provided by digital service providers within the pharma industry

- Usha Sharma

What is the business potential of digital communication within the pharma sector and how fast is the market growing?

There is a huge potential for digital communication in the pharmaceutical sector as evidenced by the robust growth year-on-year. This is the only industry which has withstood recession and political turmoil. Global spending on medicines is expected to reach $1.2 trillion by end of 2017, according to a recent report by the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics. With increased competition and cost cutting and with more customer getting text savvy (use of smart phones and Internet), the market is skewed towards digital engagement. Digital communication is not only between pharma and doctors, but it is a three-way communication where all the stakeholders are involved giving ample opportunity for all the digital service providers in this industry.

What services do Digital A Plus offer to pharma companies? Do you also cater to other sectors?

Digital A Plus strives towards empowering its customers with all possible offerings that will add value to their business/service/life. The offerings can be mainly categorised into business promotion (marketing support to the pharma companies), medical training (to the medical field force), HCP education, and patient education and awareness. Although most of our offerings are skewed towards business promotion, recently patient education is gaining rapid momentum.

Recently, the PM announced that medical practitioners should prescribe generic medicines. According to you how will this impact market dynamics ?What role will DigitalAPlus play in this change?