Chinese companies set to break foreign monopoly on anti-ED pill

"Gold dagger-axe, iron-clad horse, the presence is felt across thousands of miles."

This line from a poem by Xin Qiji, a famous poet in the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), now has a new context in 21st century China.

Now, a homegrown drug for erectile dysfunction (ED), known as gold dagger-axe, presents an option for millions of Chinese men who wish to rejuvenate the quality of their sex life, and coincidentally, at a cheaper price.

Only four months after the patent of the world's largest drug maker Pfizer's Viagra expired in China, Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings (GPH), the largest Chinese drug maker by revenue, formally introduced its generic drug, known as Jin'ge (gold dagger-axe). The drug is targeting a sizeable share of the market, which the company said is at least worth 10 billion yuan ($1.63 billion).

Jin'ge is the first approved product of more than 10 homegrown generic drugs on a list hoping to fill the vacuum left by the expired patent of Pfizer's Viagra.

However, GPH did not reveal Jin'ge's price, which touches many nerves, only saying it will be revealed when Jin'ge arrives at drugstores by the end of October.

A big market

About 46 percent of Chinese males over the age of 40 suffer from ED, or an estimated 127 million men, GPH said at the launch of Jin'ge on Thursday in Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong Province. Experts said the market could potentially be worth of around 10 billion yuan.

However, Guo Yinglu, an academician and medical expert on andrology, said during Thursday's launch that the findings could only serve as a loose reference. He said in China, drug makers typically do not spend enough money required for more credible findings.

GPH estimated that Jin'ge will become the company's star product, like Viagra is for Pfizer, and is poised for annual revenues of up to 1 billion yuan within five years.

Zhang Buyong, chief researcher of industry news portal menet.com.cn, said patient education will be vital in expanding the pie for anti-ED drugs.

"Currently, about 10 million men roughly take one pill of anti-ED drugs per year. Assuming they take two pills, after proper medical advice, the market will be expanded by 1 billion yuan," Zhang said during the launch Thursday, emphasizing Jin'ge's non-drug role in boosting the quality of life.

It's estimated only 10 percent of ED patients go to hospitals for treatment, and if more of them seek treatment, the market for anti-ED drugs would expand.

A powerful weapon

In addition to the blue pills (Viagra) by US-based Pfizer, the yellow pills (Cialis) by US firm Eli Lilly and Company and the orange pills (Levitra) by German company Bayer, the anti-ED drug shelf now will see pink pills made by GPH. The three foreign drugs are sold at 90 yuan to 136 yuan per pill.

Jin'ge will be sold in diamond-shaped pink pills.

"Pink is the color of romance as we believe Jin'ge is partly a drug and partly a consumer product," Wang Wenchu, a senior executive with GPH, told the Global Times Thursday.

Guo said the arrival of Jin'ge is good news for patients as GPH is a qualified drug maker and its products more trustworthy compared to fake Viagra products readily and popularly available on the market that are indiscriminately used.

Wang said distribution and pricing advantages will ensure the success of Jin'ge. He added GPH's advantage over Pfizer and other competitors is its broad and effective network of distributors.

In China, 80 percent of anti-ED drugs is sold over-the-counter in drugstores, rather than through prescriptions, according to media reports.

Wang revealed that the price of Jin'ge will be significantly lower than Viagra but more expensive than other domestically manufactured drugs.

As the first approved generic drug after Viagra, Jin'ge enjoys considerable advantages, an insider familiar with the administrative procedures of drug application and approval told the Global Times Sunday on condition of anonymity.

"The advantages are threefold. First, the generic drug could occupy the first, and in some cases, the only slot on hospitals' procurement lists," the insider said.

The two other advantages are that the first three generic drugs enjoy additional favors during the bidding and tendering process with hospitals, and the first generic drug can quickly dominate the market with lower price, according to the insider.

Hard battles ahead

Confronted with a newcomer in the anti-ED market, Pfizer and Eli Lilly and Company, which dominated the market with a combined share of around 94 percent in 2013, don't seem too concerned.

"Pfizer has extensive experience in coping with situations after its patents expire. For Viagra, Pfizer will act according to precedents, taking no 'special' measures," the company said in a statement e-mailed to the Global Times on September 3.

But that does not mean there won't be a price war.

A report by Beijing Business Today newspaper on Friday said foreign brands are closely watching the market as Jin'ge has not entered the market yet and there is only one domestic drug producer that has received the authority's green light, citing an insider.

The report said that as more and more Chinese drug makers join the battle and fight for a share of the market, Pfizer will definitely lower the price of Viagra.

Viagra's market share dropped significantly in South Korea after a bunch of generic drugs stormed the market when Pfizer's patent expired in May 2012, according to a report by the National Business Daily on September 2.

"We see it as a normal market behavior. Currently I don't know of any changes in our strategy," a manager with Eli Lilly and Company, who declined to be named, told the Global Times Friday.

The manager said retail sales at drugstores account for as much as 70 percent of Cialis' sales, a channel heavily advocated by GPH in its campaign to promote Jin'ge.

"I'd say there will be a battle," the manager said.

Wang said the battle won't be as simple as a one-round joust, but rather will take several rounds of clashes of strength, product quality and sales strategies, with each side using techniques which will evolve over time.