Online Pharmacies Predicted to Thrive by 2003.

The online consumer healthcare market will be worth $1.7 billion by 2003, according to a report by Jupiter Communications. Jupiter estimates that combined, the online and offline consumer healthcare market will generate 205.2 billion by 2003, with the online market accounting for less than one percent of the total. Online pharmacies will be the primary driving force of healthcare ecommerce in the short term, according to Jupiter. Further, the competition that the online sector is already providing is expected to bring off-line pharmacies online rapidly, in order to protect their market. Jupiter identified four core market segments. These are prescription harmaceuticals, over-the-counter drugs, nutraceuticals such as vitamin supplements, and personal care products. The study estimates that online prescription drug market will be worth $966 million by 2003, or .6 percent of the total market. The over-the-counter sector is predicted to generate $314 million dollars, with an annual compound growth rate of almost 216 percent. The sale of over-the-counter drugs is expected to outpace that of prescription drugs because the lack of legal and medical restrictions on their sale. Nonetheless, the enormity of the prescription drugs market means that even the small segment that the online market can corner will generate substantial revenue. The nutraceutical market is expected to be worth $434 million by 2003, up from a mere $1 million in 1998. The online personal care products market is expected to generate $706 million by 2003, up from $8 million in 1998. The compound annual growth rate is estimated at 145 percent.