China's Internet-Plus Healthcare: On the Brink of Transformation and Ready to Take Off

Internet and mobile technologies are driving cross-industry integration and ushering traditional industries into an era of restructuring. In comparison, the pharmaceutical e-commerce sector has entered a growth phase as policies have been gradually relaxed, although its momentum remains weaker than that of e-commerce for other consumer goods. Pharmaceutical e-commerce will undoubtedly facilitate the redistribution of interests among stakeholders across the value chain and the restructuring of various segments, while also promoting the transformation of offline enterprises. However, regulatory policies remain the most significant barrier to industry development.

Online healthcare has entered a phase of vibrant diversification. As the quality of online medical services improves, it will partially replace offline services and meet basic healthcare needs.Internet and mobile technologies will further penetrate hospital operations and service workflows. As both online and offline services undergo continuous optimization, the two will become closely integrated, gradually breaking down geographical and traditional procedural barriers to enhance the efficiency of resource allocation.

“China’s Pharma Internet Plus: Storms Brewing, Momentum Building” was jointly compiled by Deloitte China’s Life Sciences and Healthcare Industry team, in collaboration with its Technology, Media & Telecommunications Industry team and the Center for Insights and Research. VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) has curated the key highlights from this report to join readers in exploring the development of pharmaceutical e-commerce and online healthcare over the next three to five years, as well as the evolution of the healthcare and pharmaceutical ecosystem.

Eight Major Trends:

· Trend 1: An estimated RMB 150 billion worth of hospital and retail terminal market space is expected to shift online

· Trend 2: Pharmaceutical e-commerce will drive the restructuring of all segments across the value chain

· Trend 3: The landscape of pharmaceutical e-commerce will evolve toward a model characterized by organic integration and mutual benefit.

· Trend 4: Pharmaceutical e-commerce will drive the transformation of offline enterprises

· Trend 5: Internet and mobile technologies will reshape the operational and service processes of offline hospitals

· Trend 6: With a patient-centric approach, internet healthcare will drive the restructuring of traditional healthcare service models

· Trend 7: Smart wearable devices are deeply integrated into the healthcare sector, ushering in significant growth opportunities for hardware, software, and related services

· Trend 8: Big healthcare data will lead the healthcare system into the era of intelligence