Do Patent Terms Impact Domestic RD Spending in the Pharmaceutical Industry?

摘要

Grootendorst and Di Matteo’s study showed that extended patent terms in Canada significantly increased domestic R&D spending in the pharmaceutical industry. However, some of the authors’ assumptions and methods, including the choice of control variables, the technique used in calculating policy impacts over time and the failure to incorporate the influence of global factors, are problematic. The overall impression is that the study highlights a correlation between extended patent terms and increased R&D expenditure in Canada but does not provide firm evidence of a causal link.