Economics of Biosensors

Information on the economics of biosensors and what it takes to start a biosensor industry is very difficult to obtain in the open literature, as companies guard this type of information very carefully and will not disclose it. Furthermore, predictions in the different areas of biosensor market growth such as, besides medical applications, the environment, security, drugs, and pathogen detection in food and in air are not easily available. This chapter attempts to provide a perspective of the markets for different types of biosensors and what it takes to set up a biosensor industry. It analyzes recent market reports and trends and provides examples of investment/financing in biosensor companies. Newsguide US pointed out that the market for biosensors would reach $6.1 billion by 2012 on the basis of a new report by Global Industry Analysts, Inc., because of the increasing opportunities for the use of biosensors in industrial, environmental, and especially medical diagnostic applications. A report entitled “In-vitro diagnostics market report and analysis 2008-2023” examines the commercial prospects for in vitro diagnostics (IVD) in the global market. The report emphasizes that molecular diagnostics is increasing the prospects of personalized medicine that should assist patients, companies, and healthcare providers. A report entitled “Biosensors open umpteen opportunities for security and biodefense detection” points out that the demand for multiple applications is increasing and the annual growth rate will be around 16.9%. The report also indicates that though biosensors are exhibiting a double-digit growth, there are still a few challenges and problems that need to be addressed, such as high cost of development for each biosensor application.