Weekly Report: The Inflection Point of Internet + Healthcare Has Arrived — Industry Leaders Weigh In as Junhetang Secures RMB 100 Million in Funding

If one were to describe the changes in the “Internet + Healthcare” sector in 2017 in a single sentence, “progress amidst twists and turns” would undoubtedly be the most apt characterization.

Alibaba Health has made multi-faceted strides in the “smart healthcare” sector, launching the medical AI product “DoctorYou” and applying blockchain technology to the development of medical consortia...

Jianke has acquired or established multiple physical hospitals in Guangzhou, Wuhan, Chongqing, Hangzhou, and Hainan; strengthened its supply chain by partnering with numerous domestic and foreign pharmaceutical and medical device companies; and expanded its offline network by setting up multiple retail pharmacies and DTP (Direct-to-Patient) pharmacies...

Qilekang Announces Launch of “1 Billion Yuan Doctor Entrepreneurship Fund,” Providing a Range of Support Including Funding, Facilities, and Manpower to Physicians Practicing on the Qilekang Internet Hospital…

Kang Aiduo Celebrates Its Sixth Anniversary, Completes Online and Offline Layout by Leveraging the Industry Resources of Its Holding Company, Tai'an Tang, and Accelerates Its Transformation into a Comprehensive Health Service Provider; Signs Tripartite Cooperation Agreement with Kunming Pharmaceutical Group and Guangdong Medicinal Materials & Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. to Strengthen Supply Chain Foundation...

In the pharmaceutical O2O sector, Kuai Fang Song Yao has launched an intelligent pharmacy system, aiming to provide retail pharmacies with IT solutions and delivery services to “empower” them. Meanwhile, Dingdang Kuai Yao has introduced AI robots, smart vending machines for medications, and its Smart Pharmacy 3.0 system, while also unveiling its “Smart Pharmacy.”

Viewpoint:

1、Ali Health’s Kang Kai: Transitioning from an Extensive to an Efficiency-Driven Model, with Emphasis on Alignment with Regulatory Directions

The development of the “Internet + Healthcare” sector this year can be described as a mixed bag.

On a positive note, State Council documents reflect the government’s supportive and encouraging stance toward “Internet + Healthcare.” On a negative note, the rollout of implementing policies has been relatively slow in keeping pace with this national support.

For example, regarding policies related to prescription drugs, the "Draft for Comments" issued in November 2017 stipulated that pharmaceutical retailers were prohibited from selling prescription drugs online or publishing prescription drug information via the internet.

This indicates that there is still considerable uncertainty at the level of concrete policy implementation. The outlook remains unclear for the overall market and merchants, who have adopted a wait-and-see stance, which in turn hinders the forward momentum of the industry and the market.

Regarding prescription drugs, it has been mentioned that the issue of online prescribing needs to be addressed. Although internet hospitals have made some progress, they still operate in a relatively gray area.

On the other hand, the issue of prescription drug delivery needs to be addressed. In fact, the State Council has explicitly outlined the models of “online order, in-store pickup” and “online order, store-based delivery.” However, we remain unclear about the specific details of how these national policies will be implemented on the ground.

The industry as a whole has largely continued along its existing logic and trajectory, with few significant breakthroughs. This is partly due to relevant policies, and partly because the entire sector is still in a process of reflection and cognitive development.

Key Competitive Factors for the Industry’s FutureThe foremost factor is undoubtedly the team, along with the integrated innovation capabilities built upon that team foundation; capital comes second. Another critical aspect is whether a company’s voice can be heard at the policy level. Today, we observe significant variations in local policies amid considerable uncertainty and lack of clarity in the broader policy landscape.

2、1Drug.com’s Yu Gang: Aligning with Industry Trends, Organically Integrating Resources to Build an Internet-Based Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Ecosystem

In 2018, we will primarily focus on the following initiatives:

1. Continuously advance “integration,” with tighter business synergy and seamless alignment among 1YaoWang, 1Zhen, and No.1 Pharmacy City;

2. Empowering partners, with the aim for No. 1 Medicine City to provide products and services to over 100,000 pharmacies and more than 10,000 hospitals in the future, while also helping upstream pharmaceutical companies distribute drugs to end-users more efficiently;

3. Continuously build core competencies, including supply chain management and business intelligence capabilities, leveraging business intelligence and big data to provide users with precision marketing and personalized services;

4. Continuous innovation, piloting new technologies and directions such as AI+pharmaceuticals and blockchain-based drug distribution traceability.

The times have presented us with a prime opportunity. As the internet’s penetration into the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry is still in its early stages, Gangling Group will fully leverage its existing advantages in platforms, technology, and supply chain management to contribute to the “Healthy China” initiative and forge ahead on the path of breakthrough development in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector.

Report:The Tipping Point for the “Internet+” Pharmaceutical Industry Has Arrived: Ali Health, 111.com, Jianke, and Quanyuantang to Focus on “Intensive Cultivation”

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