eClinical Industry To Be Worth $5 Billion By 2018

MarketsandMarkets, a market research company and consulting firm, recently released a report on the eClinical industry, forecasting that the industry will be worth $5 billion by 2018. The report is titled, “eClinical Solutions Market by Products (CDMS/EDC, CTMS, eCOA, Randomization & Trial Supply Management, Safety), Services, Buyers (Pharma/Biopharma, CROS, Healthcare Providers) & Delivery Modes (Web Hosted, on-Premise, Cloud-Based)—Global Forecast to 2018.” Interested parties can find information on market value, industry divisions, growth and restriction factors, and regional growth. 

Market Value

Study authors expect the eClinical market to reach $5 billion by 2018 (CAGR of 13.5%). North America dominates the market with a 60 percent share, followed by Europe with 27 percent. Asia-Pacific is expected to grow the fastest with 20 percent CAGR. Growth is a factor of the number of patients, fast recruitment, low cost CROs, and government support. Market growth and value is also influenced by companies merging or collaborating on joint ventures.

Industry Divisions

The report analyzes the products and services segments. Products include clinical data management systems (CDMS)/electronic data capture (EDC), clinical trial management systems (CTMS), electronic clinical outcome assessment (eCOA), and randomization and trial supply management (RTSM). Others include lab integration systems, regulatory information management services, and coding systems. Services include consulting, training, and support services.

Growth and Restriction Factors

There are a number of factors driving industry growth, including an urgency to reduce clinical discovery time, to reduce costs, improve data reliability, and meet regulatory requirements. Pharmaceutical spending on drug discovery is increasing the need for cloud-based eClinical solutions. Additionally, companies are moving to contract research organizations (CROs) to assist in drug discovery, manufacturing, and regulatory approval. These CRO’s are better positioned to adopt eClinical systems than academic research centers. Restricting growth is capital investment and personnel investment, as biotechnology companies have to invest a significant amount of capital to implement new systems and train people to use the systems. 

Regional Growth

North America is the site of significant growth due to large numbers of biotechnology companies, government investment in drug discovery, and increasing investment in technology. These countries, the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, are ready for major investment by eClinical solutions providers. Europe and Asia-Pacific are also prime markets. Asia-Pacific is especially desirable due to the number of available patients and the low cost of conducting trials.