The challenge by domestic enterprises to the transnational corporations' domination: A case study of the Argentine pharmaceutical industry

Given the relative reduction in the rate of innovation of the large TNCs operating in the pharmaceutical field and the reduced interest in the Argentine market by most of the TNCs in the late 1960s and the early 1970s, domestic firms have been able to challenge the domination of the pharmaceutical industry by foreign enterprises. Using the techniques of product differentiation, they have been able to launch more new medicines into the market than foreign enterprises. This was done through transfer of technology agreements in a number of cases, relying on non-patented sources for the provision of active components in other cases and devoting some resources to local R and D. As a result of the challenge, foreign participation in the market for finished products in Argentina was not high by international standards (57% in 1972), the majority of the pharmaceutical sub-markets showed a medium degree of business concentration and the ranking of the leading firms included 6 local enterprises among the 15 leaders of the country.