Methods
Existing biotechnology data sets create many challenges for this project. For example, definitions of biotechnology vary between studies and many datasets focus on specific regions. Moreover, the rigor of their statistical measures and in their transparency vary between countries. In addition, countries that are not part of the European Union (EU), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) or the Group of Twenty Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (G-20) tend to be excluded from global comparative surveys. To overcome these issues, we employed a careful selection of broad data sets to avoid bias from any single source and to ensure global coverage. In limited cases, selected measurements for individual countries were added to ensure their representation. China was counted as three independent entities: Mainland China (measured only as Shanghai in some cases), Taiwan and Hong Kong.
SOURCE: OECD Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard, 2009.
Metrics
The following describes the metrics used in this survey.
Intellectual Property
Patent strength was derived from: Park, W.G. 2008. International patent protection: 1960–2005. Research Policy 37(4):761–766. This index is the unweighted sum of five separate measures: patentable inventions, membership in international treaties, duration of protection, enforcement mechanisms and restrictions (e.g., compulsory licensing).
Intensity
Public company data for the measures in this section were derived from company disclosures and Huggett, B., Hodgson, J., Lähteenmäki, R. 2009. Public biotech 2008—the numbers. Nature Biotechnology 27:710–721. In selecting public companies, Huggett et al. selectively included "companies whose primary commercial activity depends on the application of biological organisms, systems or processes, or on the provision of specialist services to facilitate the understanding thereof." The authors also excluded pharmaceutical companies, medical-device companies and contract-research organizations. The increased transparency of public companies, relative to private companies, enables a more objective comparison of biotechnology activities. Market capitalization was derived from company disclosures. Public biotechnology companies per capita was derived by dividing the public-company count, as described above, by the 2008 mid-year population as sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau International Database. Public biotechnology company employees per capita was derived by dividing the public-company employee count, as described above, by the 2008 mid-year population as sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau International Database. Public biotechnology company revenues per GDP was derived by dividing the public biotechnology company employee count, as described above, by the 2008 GDP as sourced from the IMF World Economic Outlook Database. Biotech patents / total patents filed with PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty), Biotechnology VC per GDP and Biotechnology R&D per total R&D were derived from the OECD. The measure of Biotechnology R&D per total R&D for Singapore was derived from the Singapore Economic Development Board (SEDB).
Enterprise Support
The Business Friendly Environment metric was derived from: Doing Business 2010: Reforming through difficult times. The World Bank, the IFC, and Palgrave MacMillan (www.doingbusiness.org). This index is constructed by surveying local experts on a synthetic business case. Potential limitations of this index are that it is based on a specific usiness form of a specified size, and refers to conducting business in a country’s largest city (with the exception of certain countries such as China). Biotechnology venture capital was derived from the OECD measures of venture capital activity from 2007. Venture capital availability was derived from: Porter, M., Schwab, K. 2008. The Global Competitiveness Report, 2008-2009. World Economic Forum. This source employs an international survey to produce its index. Capital availability was derived from: Milken Institute Capital Access Index, 2008. This data set is an important complement to Biotechnology venture capital and Biotechnology venture capital availability because venture capital is neither necessary nor generally independently sufficient to support nascent biotechnology ventures to financial independence; other forms of capital can play important roles.
Education / Workforce
Post-secondary science graduates per capita were derived from UNESCO figures, divided by 2007 mid-year population as sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau International Database. PhD graduates per capita and R&D personnel per total employment were derived from the OECD. Singapore figures for Post-secondary science graduates per capita, PhD graduates per capita, R&D personnel per total employment, and Biotechnology workers are from the SEDB. The Biotechnology workers figure for China measures Shanghai only. Talent Retention (brain drain) was measured as the reciprocal of the percentage of a country’s doctoral recipients who expressed definite intentions to stay in the United States following graduation there, as reported by the National Science Foundation. Talent Attraction (brain gain) was measured as the relative number of international graduate students studying in a country, as reported by the OECD.
Foundations
Business R&D expenditures per GDP and Government R&D support per GDP were derived from the OECD. For Singapore these measures were derived from the SEDB. Infrastructure quality was derived from: Porter, M., Schwab, K. 2008. The Global Competitiveness Report, 2008-2009. World Economic Forum. This utilizes an international survey to produce its index. Innovation and Entrepreneurship was derived from the 2009 Legatum Prosperity Index.
