HealthyWay Files for IPO, Highlighting Its Role in China's Digital Healthcare Transformation

Events & Perspectives

The level of attention garnered by internet healthcare can be translated into the current popular slang as, “You’re so hot—are you trying to turn the world upside down?” While “turning the world upside down” may be quite a challenge, “revamping” it is certainly negotiable. With development underway, partnerships formed, and transactions conducted, one player takes the stage after another, striking a rhythm that seems set to rock the globe.

Last week, another major player entered the online healthcare sector.“Baidu Doctor” App Major Launch, which underscores the strategy of “connecting people with services” that Baidu CEO Robin Li consistently emphasized at the company’s 2015 annual meeting. At this point, Baidu’s strategic layout in the healthcare sector can be said to have become increasingly clear.

Overseas,Google X Lab Also Aims to Build Early Cancer Detector, this detector will rapidly assess the subject's physiological status based on luminescent nanoparticles in their blood.

Samsung, equally ambitious and dissatisfied with traditional smart health watches, is reportedly developing a device that can, according to VCBeat.EDSAP: A Head-Mounted Smart Device for Tracking Brainwaves, and a prototype has been launched. By tracking brainwaves, it can help prevent the onset of certain neurological conditions, such as early-stage stroke.

Additionally,Microsoft Releases HoloLens Mixed Reality Glasses, the holographic images can be interactively controlled by users through gestures. This is arguably Microsoft’s most exciting product launch in the past decade, and its future trajectory is worth watching.

In addition to independent development, there are also many collaborative efforts.

Last week,HP Partners with Irish Medical Device Manufacturer Crospon to Develop a Transdermal Patch, this transdermal patch can deliver multiple therapeutic agents to patients using technology already employed in HP’s inkjet printers, and is expected to reach the market within three years.

Peking University, in collaboration with the Hepatology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, has launched China’s first mobile health app for liver disease., patients can communicate with doctors simply by moving their fingers, which improves patient compliance and effectively manages the disease.

Furthermore, compared with collaborative development of targeted new products, some teams are more enthusiastic about overall strategic layout.

Alibaba Health and Shanghai Winning Health Software Successfully Joined Forces Last Week, both parties agreed to share resources and collaborate in areas such as medical services, health services, pharmaceutical distribution and regulation, and health insurance risk control, aiming to create an integrated online-to-offline (O2O) health service business model and its ecosystem.

Quyi Network Officially Launched in Shanghai Last Week, in partnership with Changhai Hospital, to upgrade the “Mobile Hospital” service and offer free registration. It was announced that all users seeking medical care through the “Qu Yiyuan” App will receive a subsidy of RMB 4.5 toward the basic registration fee. Subsequently, more hospitals in Shanghai will join this initiative, gradually benefiting millions of residents in the city.

Last WeekPharma Giant Novartis Teams Up with High-Profile VC to Pursue Smart Healthcare, the two parties will collaborate to establish a joint venture investment company, leveraging Novartis’s expertise in pharmaceutical R&D and manufacturing and Qualcomm’s strengths in digital and mobile technologies, with a focus on identifying startup teams that possess innovative medical technologies or new products.

Wearable Device CompanyMisfit also partnered with Nest, Logitech, August, and IFTTT to enter the smart home market.。Although this shift was necessitated by low user loyalty, it may soon become a key player in the smart home sector.

Finally, let’s discuss investment and trading last week.Hybio Pharmaceutical Invests in Norway’s Pudi Medical, Entering the Mobile Healthcare IndustryUpon completion of the investment, it will account for approximately 20.79% of Pudi Medical’s total share capital at that time. Meanwhile, Pudi Medical has confirmed Hybio Pharmaceutical as its exclusive distribution partner in the Chinese market for its innovative product, the “Non-invasive Continuous Glucose Monitoring Smart Band” (GluoPred). The specific distribution agreement will be executed after the completion of the initial investment tranche.

which raised $100 million in financing last yearGuahao.com Acquires Jinxiang.com for $600 Million, thereby gaining qualification for online drug transactions and entering the pharmaceutical e-commerce sector. Industry insiders have stated that pharmaceutical e-commerce will witness its first major sales surge in 2015, bringing about significant changes across the entire pharmaceutical industry.

Additional Note: The U.S. FDA has approved the first mobile app system for dynamic glucose monitoring to enter the market. Through mobile devices such as the iPhone, this mobile health application system, called “Dexcom Share Direct Secondary Displays,” can remotely and securely monitor blood glucose levels in diabetic patients in real time.

Healthcare Reform

Beijing Allows Doctors to Open Clinics:At a press conference on “Deepening the Reform of the Education and Healthcare Systems” held during the Beijing Municipal People’s Congress, it was announced that Beijing will adjust the community medication catalog this year, allocating medicines according to functional service needs. Medications for chronic diseases will be made available at community hospitals and health stations. Meanwhile, physicians from large hospitals will be permitted to establish private clinics in communities, some pharmacies are expected to be designated as medical insurance-covered providers, and prescriptions issued by hospitals can be filled at community pharmacies.

National Health and Family Planning Commission Launches "Three-Year Action Plan for Improving Medical Services":The National Health and Family Planning Commission Announces the Action Plan for Further Improving Medical Services, Proposing to Strengthen Medical Management, Optimize Service Processes, and Facilitate Public Access to Medical Care from 2015 to 2017 by Creating a Warm Clinical Environment and Promoting Appointment-Based Diagnosis and Treatment Services.

Guizhou Province’s Telemedicine Policy Pilot Approved:It will cover 61 hospitals within the province, aiming to achieve standardized, healthy, and orderly development of telemedicine services within two years, improve the diagnostic and treatment capabilities of medical institutions at all levels in the province, alleviate the difficulties and high costs associated with accessing medical care, and reduce the medical economic burden on society and families.

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Overseas

Authoritative Release of the 2015 Guidelines for the Management of Type 2 Diabetes by the American and European Diabetes Associations
The American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) have updated their recommendations on glucose-lowering strategies, originally issued in 2012. The updates address glycemic targets, medication selection, and administration strategies.

Data

Major Shift in China's Medical Device Retail Market: E-Commerce Accounts for 25.82%:According to a report by the China Medical Pharmaceutical Materials Association, of the approximately RMB 255.6 billion in medical device sales in China in 2014, the hospital market accounted for about RMB 194.4 billion (76.09%), while the retail market amounted to roughly RMB 61.2 billion (23.91%). Within the retail market, traditional retail channels generated approximately RMB 45.4 billion in sales (74.18%), whereas e-commerce channels contributed around RMB 15.8 billion (25.82%).

The scale of China's mobile medical market is expected to reach 12.53 billion yuan in 2017:The "2014 Report on the Development of China's Internet Healthcare Industry," released in Beijing by the China Medical Pharmaceutical Material Association, projects that the overall size of China's internet healthcare market will reach RMB 36.53 billion by 2017, with mobile healthcare surpassing RMB 20 billion to exceed the scale of the online healthcare market and account for 55% of the total.

The Global Smartphone Installed Base Will Continue to Grow:According to the latest research report released by eMarketer, the number of smartphones in use worldwide was 1.3 billion in 2013, rising to 1.6 billion in 2014. The number of smartphones is projected to reach 2.16 billion in 2016, and their market share within the mobile phone market is expected to exceed 50% by 2018.

In 2014, global Internet healthcare involved $4.7 billion in funding:Mercom Capital Group has released its annual report on financing and mergers and acquisitions in the healthcare information technology sector for 2014. The report shows that transactions in the healthcare IT sector increased to 670 deals in 2014, compared with 571 deals totaling $2.2 billion in 2013, while venture capital funding more than doubled to reach $4.7 billion. Global venture capital investment in healthcare IT hit a new record of $4.7 billion in 2014, representing a more than twofold increase from 2013.

New Technologies

Japan: Regenerative Medicine Takes a Step Forward—Hearts Can Now Be Cultivated
After a Japanese research team transplanted sheets of cardiomyocytes derived from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells into rats with myocardial infarction, they found that the grafts integrated into the heart tissue, raising greater expectations for regenerative medicine.

Capital