Medtronic is putting in place plans to grow its emerging markets' revenue to 20 percent of the overall revenue in the next few years. In FY'12, the US-headquartered medical devices company recorded 21 percent growth rate in the emerging markets. It is looking to better the figure this fiscal with significant investments in countries such as China and India.

The broad opportunities are in cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and spine conditions. China and India are significant markets in Asia for the company, given the size of their populations and the untapped markets. "Our biggest near-term opportunity in emerging markets is in our existing therapies, which primarily address the premium segment. To provide some perspective, just improving penetration of these therapies in emerging markets to levels similar to those in developed markets represents over $5 billion in annual opportunity," said Medtronic in an email response to BioSpectrum.

In the longer term, the value segment is an additional opportunity. "We are laying the necessary groundwork to be the leaders in the emerging value segment with new business models and our investments in emerging market infrastructure," stated the company.

Scaling the Great Wall of China

With globalization as a key focus area, Medtronic has taken several steps to expand its reach. In the Asia Pacific region, its major focus this year has been the China market with its huge untapped potential. Most recently, it announced the acquisition of China Kanghui Holdings, one of China's leading orthopedic companies with products in trauma, spine and surgical instrumentation.