 |
|
|
|||||
The Trump administration has been talking to drugmakers about ways to raise prices of medicines in Europe and elsewhere in order to cut drug costs in the United States, according to a White House official and three pharmaceutical industry sources. U.S. officials told drug companies it would support their international negotiations with governments if they adopt “most favored nation” pricing under which U.S. drug costs match the lower rates offered to other wealthy countries, the White House official said. The U.S. is currently negotiating bilateral trade deals and setting tariff rates on the sector. The Trump administration has asked some companies for ideas on raising prices abroad, two of the sources said, describing multiple meetings over several months aimed at lowering U.S. prices without triggering cuts to research and development spending drugmakers insist would result. The White House official called the effort collaborative, saying both sides were seeking advice from each other. The U.S. pays more for prescription drugs than any other country, often nearly three times as much as other developed nations. President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he wants to narrow this gap to stop Americans from being “ripped off.” The previously unreported discussions reflect the challenges Trump faces to achieve that goal, and are the backdrop to the letters he sent last week to CEOs of 17 major drugmakers, urging them to cut U.S. prices to match those paid overseas. Unlike in the U.S., where market forces determine drug prices, European governments typically negotiate directly with companies to set prices for their national healthcare systems. Anna Kaltenboeck, a health economist at Verdant Research, said European nations have leverage to drive pricing and are sometimes willing to walk away from purchasing medicines they deem too expensive. Drugmakers generate most of their sales in the U.S. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America the industry’s main lobby group has always argued that cutting U.S. prices would stifle innovation by lowering R&D spending. PhRMA declined to comment on the private meetings. Kaltenboeck said past studies had shown that drugmakers made enough money in the U.S. to more than fund their entire global R&D spends. “Prices can come down in the United States without being increased in other countries, and we can still get innovation,” she said. TOP PRIORITY Despite the Trump administration’s tariff threats and pressure to move more manufacturing to the U.S., the push to raise European drug prices is its top priority in discussions with industry, according to a senior executive at a European drugmaker, who spoke on condition of anonymity about the confidential meetings. “This is the key conversation right now with PhRMA and every company getting that message from Pennsylvania Avenue to a point that we are already executing on it,” the executive said, referring to the White House address. The company had already met with European governments on the issue, the executive added. An E.U. Commission spokesperson said it is in regular contact with the pharma industry and pointed to an agreement with the U.S. that should it impose tariffs on pharmaceuticals, they would be capped at 15%. When asked how the administration would support international drug price negotiations, the White House official referred Reuters to Trump’s most favored nation executive order from May. That order directed trade officials to pursue trade and legal action against countries keeping drug prices below fair market value. In last week’s letters, Trump complained that since the May executive order, most industry proposals had simply shifted blame for high prices or requested policy changes that would result in billions in industry handouts. A second source, a pharmaceutical executive who was not authorized to speak on the matter, said the Trump administration has been continually meeting with representatives of his company and had discussed strategies for raising drug prices internationally. “There’s a big push from the administration to drive up prices outside the U.S.,” the executive said. The executive said the Trump administration had been looking at using trade talks with the UK and EU as leverage, and considered pressuring countries to spend a higher percentage of GDP on new medicines or offering tariff breaks in exchange for higher drug spending. It was understood that the UK deal specifically aims to get the country to ramp up investment in branded medicines over time, the executive said. A spokesperson for the UK government said it would continue to work closely with the U.S. and its own pharmaceutical industry to understand the possible impact of any changes to drug pricing, without commenting on the trade talks. In April, over 30 industry CEOs including those from AstraZeneca, Bayer and Novo Nordisk signed a letter to European Union President Ursula von der Leyen saying Europe needed to rethink its pricing policies. “It’s going to be very difficult for a country that already has the ability to control what it spends to go in the other direction,” Kaltenboeck said, “and it doesn’t make much sense for them politically.” Patrick Wingrove and Maggie Fick, Reuters
Category:
E-Commerce
Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp. posted a 421.8 billion yen ($2.9 billion) profit in the April-June quarter, rebounding from a loss a year earlier as its investments benefited from the craze for artificial intelligence. Quarterly sales at Tokyo-based SoftBank Group, which invests heavily in AI companies like Nvidia and OpenAI, rose 7% to 1.8 trillion yen ($12 billion), the company said Thursday. SoftBank’s loss in April-June 2024 was 174 billion yen. The company’s fortunes tend to fluctuate because it invests in a range of ventures through its Vision Funds, a move that carries risks. The groups founder, Masayoshi Son, has emphasized that he sees a vibrant future in AI. SoftBank has also invested in Arm Holdings and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Both companies, which produce computer chips, have benefitted from the growth of AI. The era is definitely AI, and we are focused on AI, SoftBank senior executive Yoshimitsu Goto told reporters. An investment company goes through its ups and downs, but we are recently seeing steady growth. Some of SoftBank’s other investments also have paid off big. An example is Coupang, an e-commerce company known as the Amazon of South Korea, because it started out in Seoul. Coupang now operates in the U.S. and other Asian nations. Goto said preparations for an IPO for PayPay, a kind of cashless payment system, were going well. The company has already held IPOs for Chime, a U.S. neobank that provides banking services for low-credit consumers, and for Etoro, a personal investment platform. SoftBank Group stock, which has risen from a year ago, finished 1.3% higher on the Tokyo Stock Exchange after its earnings results were announced. Yuri Kageyama, AP business writer
Category:
E-Commerce
ESPN’s much-discussed streaming service finally has its launch date.The network announced Wednesday that its direct-to-consumer service and enhanced app will debut Aug. 21. The announcement coincided with Disney’s quarterly earning report.This week’s expanded deals with the NFL and a new partnership with WWE provides ESPN the more inventory and offerings, which it hopes will bolster the company in a landscape that is divided among cable, satellite and streaming. Will the ESPN service result in more subscribers? According to Nielsen, streaming usage surpassed broadcast and cable combined in U.S. television usage for the first time. Streaming was at 44.8% compared to linear’s 44.2%. When Nielsen started keeping track in May 2021 linear was at 64% compared to streaming’s 26%.The ESPN DTC will start out with around 25 million subscribers as those currently getting ESPN+ will migrate to the new platform. Many of those though are cable and satellite subscribers who get the service through deals with their provider. ESPN is hoping that more cord cutters will pay up to $29.95 per month since it will offer all the ESPN networks ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, ESPN on ABC, ESPN+, ESPN3, SECN+ and ACCNX as well as being able to bundle NFL Network and NFL RedZone through a deal with NFL+ Premium.Trying to determine how many of the DTC service subscribers are cord cutters will be more difficult though. Disney announced during its earnings call Wednesday that it will stop releasing ESPN streaming subscriber metrics beginning next quarter.ESPN was in nearly 100 million households in 2013. Over the past 12 years due to cord cutting and streaming, that number has dropped to 60 million. Over the next two years, that is expected to decrease to fewer than 50 million. What do the NFL and WWE deals mean for ESPN’s market footprint? Live sports remains valuable property, but the NFL is the beachfront house.For taking over NFL Network, which had also been steadily losing subscribers, ESPN gets three additional NFL games along with another outlet to air Monday night games when there are more than one, as well as the ability for its app users to get specialty highlights of their favorite players or teams. There will also be ways to access stats, betting and fantasy sports info on the app while watching games.The WWE premium live events (they’re no longer called pay-per-views) also makes sense when ESPN takes over from Peacock next year. After all, the E in ESPN stands for entertainment. As Netflix chief content officer Bela Bajaria pointed out when it started carrying “Monday Night Raw” earlier this year, the WWE has a multigenerational and loyal fan base that will flock to whoever carries the events.The WWE deal applies only to the U.S. though. Netflix has the rights for overseas. Can all of this turn around ESPN’s financial outlook? It does carry some risks. ESPN had $4.3 billion in revenue last quarter, an increase of 1% from last year, but the operating profit decreased 7% to $1 billion due to increased rights fees.It is paying the NFL an average of $2.7 billion per year while the NBA 11-year deal that begins this upcoming season averages $2.6 billion per year. The five-year WWE deal will average $325 million per year.This also comes at a time when the network opted out of its $550 million contract with Major League Baseball beginning next year and appears to be out of the running for Formula One rights. ESPN pays $75 million to $90 million per year under its three-year deal, but Liberty Media, which owns F1, is seeking at least $120 million for the next contract, which begins in 2026.ESPN needs more than cable and satellite subscriber affiliate fees, which is also why it is launching a DTC product to gain more revenue. The past two years, it was been involved in prolonged negotiations with DirecTV and Spectrum before reaching deals. How can viewers get the ESPN streaming service? If cable and satellite subscribers already get ESPN+, they will automatically migrate to the new service. For cord cutters, there is an offer where they can get the ESPN unlimited plan with Disney+ and Hulu for $29.99/month for the first 12 months. AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports Joe Reedy, AP Sports Writer
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||