Healthline Networks to Keynote at Health Content08

• Posted August 4th 2008
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• by Janice

West Shell III of Healthline Networks to Keynote; Breakthrough Companies Will Kick-off the Program

PHILADELPHIA–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Health Content Advisors, (www.healthcontentadvisors.com (a division of InfoCommerce Group, Inc. (www.infocommercegroup.com) announced today that West Shell III, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Healthline Networks, will present the keynote address at the second annual Health Content08 conference to be held November 12-13, 2008 in Philadelphia.

Shell will address best practices, promising opportunities and potential pitfalls as health content companies navigate a rapidly-evolving landscape. “Technology is the new intermediary between key stakeholders in the healthcare vertical, building greater efficiencies, driving innovation and generating profits,” says Shell. He will also discuss how content companies can build equity through innovative online distribution and advertising models.

The theme of this year’s conference, Incumbents, Innovators, and Intermediaries represents how market forces in the healthcare industry are putting pressure on publishers to innovate to meet the needs of consumers and health professionals who are demanding more customized content and faster, more efficient access to larger collections of health information.

Health Content08 is expanding this year to include Innovators Showcase, where 10 emerging companies, selected by an advisory committee, will present initiatives that will re-set the standards for the industry. Sponsored by Berkery Noyes, this kick-off session will demonstrate how companies are leveraging opportunities in the areas of: Online Consumer Healthcare Information, Clinical and Point-of-care Information Services, Price and Quality Metrics, and Personalized Medicine. The submission application is available on the conference web site.

Confirmed companies represented on the program include Advanstar Communications, Berkery Noyes, BenefitFocus Media, BMJ Point of Care, ConnectivHealth, Consumer Reports, EBSCO Publishing, Elsevier Health Sciences, Healthbase Online, HealthGrades, Hearst Business Media, Lois Drapin & Company, Mendelsohn Consulting, OptumHealth, Praxeon, RemedyMD, WEGO Health and Wolters Kluwer Health.

Additional conference sponsors this year include Really Strategies, producer of RSuite, and BenefitFocus Media/icyou.com.

The Health Content08conference program is available at:

www.healthcontent08.com

ABOUT HEALTH CONTENT ADVISORS

Health Content Advisors provides consulting services to consumer and business health content companies and serves as an industry connector and arbiter of best practices and trends. It continually monitors and interprets shifts in information usage in all sectors of the healthcare market to guide publishers in their current business and identify opportunities. Its blog, Health Content in Perspective, is issued every week and can be accessed at www.healthcontentadvisors.com/blog. More information is available at www.healthcontentadvisors.com or by calling (781) 356-1766.

ABOUT INFOCOMMERCE GROUP, INC.

InfoCommerce Group provides consulting and research to commercial database publishers. InfoCommerce Group also publishes ICG Weekly Perspective, the influential weekly blog which can be accessed at www.infocommercegroup.com/blog, as well as books and special reports. It produces the annual InfoCommerce Conference as well as the Health Content conference, and the InfoCommerce Models of Excellence awards. More information is available at www.infocommercegroup.com, or by calling (610) 505-9189.

 

Decision Resources Acquires Manhattan Research

• Posted July 31st 2008
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• by Marji

Decision Resources Inc., a research and advisory firm that focuses on healthcare insights and analysis, has acquired Manhattan Research, a provider of access to physician and consumer opinions on the global healthcare market. The deal represents an expansion of Decision Resources’ market research and data business, as well as gives the company an increased presence in the consumer market research space.

 

One of Manhattan Research’s strong points is its solid focus on physician and consumer use of information technology, such as social networking, blogs, podcasts and Web 2.0.

 

By sub-segmenting their research populations into therapeutic and specialist groups and by showing the utilization and motivation behind usage behaviors, Manhattan Research will expand Decision Resources to include consumer and physician-related market research that is needed by the brand managers at biopharmaceutical companies.

 

Overall, this acquisition is a very smart move by Decision Resources; one that was needed for the company to bolster its profile in the healthcare and research markets. Combined, Decision Resources and Manhattan Research will be able to offer clients a very powerful look at the link between healthcare information and digital media. The goal is to provide clients with a better understanding of how to reach their target audience and create messages that are in line with current industry trends. If they can accomplish this, they will build a very strong and loyal customer base. The need for such data, especially in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries, is certainly not about to wane. If anything, it will continue to grow; and Decision Resources–and Manhattan Research–will be well positioned for that future growth.

 

SDI Acquires Verispan

• Posted July 30th 2008
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• by Marji

Healthcare analytics company SDI announced yesterday that it has acquired Verispan, a healthcare information and services provider. The newly-combined companies will create a de-identified longitudinal database that serves the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, medical/surgical, hospital, pharmacy, financial, payer, consumer packaged goods and government healthcare market segments.

 

The new database reflects the strong offerings that both SDI and Verispan bring to the table: SDI’s custom patient-level data analytics and Verispan’s syndicated patient-level data and audit-based analytic solutions; healthcare lists and profiles; and marketing services.

 

The companies anticipate that the acquisition will help them build their current customer base as well as increase their overall presence in the marketplace. Among the capabilities and expertise SDI and Verispan expect customers will be able to utilize are: tracking of pharmaceutical and device utilization, targeting and compensation products, marketing effectiveness studies, market research audits, healthcare profiles, comprehensive managed care offerings, data integration services, data warehousing and mining, healthcare lists and profile services, clinical data collection programs, clinical trial investigator targeting and protocol evaluation, patient therapy-management pharmacy programs, and marketing services programs.

 

This is a very key acquisition that creates quite the analytics powerhouse. Alone, SDI and Verispan had impressive offerings. But together, they will combine to offer a slate of services that will be tough to beat.

 

Customers of both companies will most definitely benefit from this solid pooling of resources. The healthcare industry has a very healthy appetite for analytics and SDI and Verispan will more than satisfy that need. Current customers will yield immediate benefits, while prospective customers will undoubtedly be more interested than ever in SDI/Verispan’s collaborative effort.

 

Now Accepting Applications to Present at Health Content08

• Posted July 24th 2008
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• by Janice

Do you have a product that will re-set the standards for health information content? If so, we invite you to be considered for one of 10 presenter positions at Health Content08’s Innovators Showcase. This is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to present before industry leaders, one of whom could be your next business partner, customer, investor, or acquirer - and to be chosen is validation of the highest order.

Our advisory committee, chaired by Richard Forman of Health Venture Group, will select 10 companies from among all of the applications.  The committee includes:

• Dr. Holly Atkinson, Chief of Medical Affairs and On-air Medical Correspondent, HealthiNation
• David Bach, MD
• Janice McCallum, Managing Director, InfoCommerce Group and Health Content Advisors 
• John Morrow, Co-Founder, The Ratings Guy
• Russell Perkins, Managing Director, Infocommerce Group
• Todd T. Pietri, Co-founder, Milestone Venture Partners
• Jay Srini - MS, MBA, FHIMSS, Chief Innovation Officer, Insurance Services Division, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center

The process is streamlined and straightforward.  Click here for more information and to download the one-page submission form.  

 

For Content Providers, It Pays to Stay Healthy

• Posted July 24th 2008
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• by Janice

A recent alliance between EBSCO’s Health Library and HealthFitness shows how  content providers are finding lucrative new opportunities with payer-supported consumer health information services, just as broad-based consumer web health portals and ad-based social media seem to be hitting a wall.      

EBSCO Publishing is licensing its EBSCO’s Health Library to HealthFitness, which provides health management programs that include screenings, risk assessments, coaching and on-site fitness centers for Fortune 500 clients, to enhance its web-based information resources. EBSCO’s Health Library includes disease fact sheets, a drug database, articles on wellness topics, alternative and natural treatments, a medical dictionary and information about procedures and tests. 

This is a wise move by EBSCO and no doubt marks the start of an upsurge in similar licensing deals between content providers and payer-supported organizations as health management programs increase in number and re-tool to provide incentives to follow healthy living habits.  Employers that pay for health insurance have an obvious incentive to keep medical payments under control by encouraging their employees to improve their health through better nutrition, exercise, and disease-management, thereby reducing their need for medical care. This is creating demand for information aimed at keeping people healthy and provides an opportunity for content providers to do well by keeping people well.

 

Nielsen, Wolters Kluwer Health Form Alliance

• Posted July 24th 2008
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• by Marji

Wolters Kluwer Health and The Nielsen Company yesterday announced the launch of the Healthcare Consumer Informatics Alliance, which will provide healthcare-related manufacturers and media companies with a better understanding of consumer behaviors and attitudes to help improve the effectiveness and efficiency of their product messages, sales and media planning.

 

More specifically, the Healthcare Consumer Informatics Alliance has developed data solutions to give marketers and media agencies insights into consumer behavior related to purchases of prescription, over-the-counter and other health-related products.

 

The initiative’s first platform, HealthScape, combines de-identified patient prescription-related transactional data with consumer purchasing, attitudinal and behavior information to provide insights into therapeutic market activity, patient trends, consumer segmentation and targeting opportunities.

 

The platform combines Nielsen’s expertise in consumer health and media and Wolters Kluwer Health’s expertise in prescribed pharmaceuticals. To do this, Healthscape integrates Nielsen’s consumer OTC and CPG purchasing and behavioral data from Homescan and Scantrack with Wolters Kluwer Health’s anonymous patient longitudinal and transactional data from Source Lx and Pharmaceutical Audit Suite (PHAST).

 

Overall, the alliance’s products will link health-related purchases to influencers such as managed care, TV and Internet advertising, in-store merchandizing and physician recommendations. This will provide insights into why consumers purchase particular products and give marketers and media agencies metrics they can use to improve the effectiveness of their strategies.

 

This collaboration between Nielsen and Wolters Kluwer Health has all of the ingredients to be a very successful endeavor. As we’ve discussed before, marketers are always seeking ways in which to get the most accurate insights about their target audience. But gaining this information from an audience of anonymous consumers is an incredible challenge. Perhaps with the confidential nature of the pharmaceutical business, this is an even greater challenge for marketers in this space.

 

This new solution will undoubtedly be a welcome addition to the pharmaceutical marketing space. Of course, it will have to prove its true value first. But that shouldn’t be a problem with the knowledge and expertise of market leaders such as Nielsen and Wolters Kluwer Health behind it. Both companies’ expertise seems to fit nicely together and have created a solution that should serve its customer base well.

 

Healthcare.com, BVK Direct Form Local Online Advertising Partnership

• Posted July 23rd 2008
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• by Marji

HealthCare.com, a player in the local healthcare provider search arena, has formed a partnership with BVK Direct, a privately-held Yellow Pages agency, to offer Healthcare.com’s local online advertising solutions to BVK Direct’s healthcare clients.

 

BVK Direct will incorporate Healthcare.com’s online healthcare directory listings to its advertising offerings. As a result, BVK Direct’s clients will be able to increase their online visibility through their inclusion in the Healthcare.com Care Provider Search.

 

Healthcare.com Care Provider Search is a local directory that helps users locate healthcare and wellness providers in categories such as physicians, hospitals and pharmacies. The directory contains more than 1.3 million providers and it is accessible on various health sites, including EverydayHealth.com, drugstore.com, MedHelp.com and RealMentalHealth.com, as well as on Healthcare.com.

 

As the Internet continues to develop into a viable advertising medium, organizations will just as rapidly seek ways in which make the most of online advertising. This alliance makes perfect sense for BVK Direct since it will provide its clients with yet another way in which to engage the end consumer and build their online presence in the process. By aligning with Healthcare.com, BVK Direct will be able to easily broaden the reach of its clients’ listings and make these clients more accessible to consumers who seek their services. These BVK Direct clients should benefit very quickly from this added exposure that Healthcare.com will provide.

 

Waterfront Media Buys Netramind to Bolster Online Presence

• Posted July 16th 2008
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• by Marji

Waterfront Media Inc., publisher of EverydayHealth, has acquired Netramind, a search engine marketing company, in its quest to become a more powerful health information site. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

 

Netramind provides online marketing solutions and helps web publishers increase their site traffic by optimizing the use of general search engines (like Yahoo and Google).

 

Waterfront Media plans to use Netramind’s technology to improve its results when consumers conduct online searches for health-related information. The company hopes to overtake the advantage WebMD has in the online health information space. In addition, Netramind’s technology will also help Waterfront Media increase traffic to its 20 health-related websites, such as SouthBeachDiet and WhattoExpect.

 

Netramind, which is based in India, will be integrated into Waterfront Media. It is the second acquisition for the media company. Last year, Waterfront Media acquired My-Calorie-Counter.com, an interactive tool that helps users track their calorie intake.

 

Waterfront Media has also added new leadership. About.com’s Marjorie Martin was hired to lead Everyday Health and the company’s other health sites. Doug McCormick, former iVillage chief executive and partner of one of its venture investors, Rho Capital Partners, was named chairman of the board.

 

The online health information market is definitely a competitive and crowded space. And anything companies can do to gain a competitive advantage is a good thing. This acquisition shows how serious Waterfront Media is about gaining that edge in the marketplace, and how concerned the company is about taking a leading position from WebMD.

 

Most companies just hire technology companies in their quest to become more prominent online. Actually purchasing the technology company is certainly an aggressive step. With new leadership in place as well, it will be interesting to track Waterfront Media’s progress in this endeavor. The company should do well as long as it remains equally committed to the quality of health information it provides to consumers who do Waterfront Media online.

 

Meredith Corp. Acquires Healthcare Marketing Communications Firm

• Posted July 15th 2008
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• by Marji

Meredith Corp. has acquired Big Communications, a healthcare marketing communications company. Meredith expects Big Communications to help the media company bolster Meredith Integrated Marketing, its unit that provides other companies with custom online and offline marketing services. It also helps Meredith create a larger footprint in the healthcare space. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

 

Big Communications develops custom healthcare communications for more than 20 of the world’s leading pharmaceutical, biotech and managed care companies. Its marketing and communications programs are delivered through various media channels, including print, digital and mobile. Their target audience includes a diverse group, from pharmaceutical sales forces and caregivers to medical professionals and patients. Big Communications will be integrated into Meredith Integrated Marketing, but will remain headquartered in Detroit.

 

A press release announcing the acquisition notes that this deal represents just one of Meredith’s recent investments to broaden its audience, improve its online and video content creation expertise, expand distribution platforms and increase sales and marketing capabilities.

 

This deal will certainly help Meredith achieve all of these goals, so it is a deal that really makes sense. With just one purchase, the media company has effectively deepened its presence in two important areas: healthcare and marketing. Look for Meredith to use its strong brand name and capabilities to further improve the offerings that Big Communications currently provides, as well as give those customers access to all that Meredith has to offer on its own. Both Meredith and Big Communications should reap plenty of benefits as a combined entity.

 

PharmaVentures Launches Database of Pharma Deals

• Posted July 14th 2008
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• by Marji

Transaction advisory and media company PharmaVentures, has launched PharmaDeals v2, a database of deals and alliances for the pharmaceutical sector. The new database is an extension of the PharmaDeals database that has served pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, law firms, financial institutions and universities for the past 12 years.

 

Using feedback from customers, PharmaVentures, introduced new features in this latest version of its database. PharmaDeals v2 has several applications, including the benchmarking of deals, analyzing competitor activity, tracking development of particular deals and investigating the landscape of emerging deals and alliances. The database has a new user interface and an improved search function that helps users wade through information related to more than 28,000 deals.

 

New features include mapping of pharmaceutical products according to the recognized, international classification of diseases, as well as an enhanced classification of product types and a rigorous classification of license territories. There are also new personalization features, such as a watch list and associated email alerting service. Customers can also access the database through several delivery methods, including IP domain-authenticated access and xml feeds.

 

PharmaDeals v2 subscribers will also receive access to PharmaDeals Review, an online publication and article archive that provides users with intelligence to compliment the data records they receive from the database. The publication contains articles about deals news and contributed feature articles from industry writers. Subscribers can also access recent and archived videos from PharmaTelevision, PharmaVentures’ online TV channel.

 

There is certainly a lot to like about the new PharmaDeals database. While the original product had more than a decade of success, it’s clear that PharmaVentures realized the need to supply its customer base with a more robust offering. Of course, the data is important. But the addition new functionality, as well as a collection of personalization features, is crucial for any database product today. The more relevant you can make such a product for your customers, the better. By communicating with customers to determine what they wanted from a new database product undoubtedly helped PharmaVentures get–and stay–on the right track with this new initiative.

 

Providing access to PharmaDeals Review and PharmaTelevision also help PharmaVentures provide the value-added services that customers also expect.