Choice Media acquires three health portals

Choice Media one of the largest healthcare information networks on the Internet, and its wholly owned subsidiary, MDChoice.com have acquired three health portals, reaching millions of additional health-minded consumers each year.

Two of the websites, DrKoop and DrDrew were acquired by MDChoice with the purchase of Vitacost Holdings, Inc. from Vitacost.com Inc. HealthSquare.com was acquired from New Media Systems, LLC. All the companies are privately held and no purchase price was disclosed. For Choice Media, the parent company founded five years ago by a group of academic physicians, the additional websites mark an acceleration in the network's rapid growth. The purchase will allow the Choice Media Network -- which is also a leading supplier of syndicated healthcare content to online portals -- to offer additional sponsorship and advertising opportunities to pharmaceutical manufacturers.

"Increasing the size of our network, so that it encompasses a larger share of the healthcare consumer audience, is a critical part of our business plan," said Ash Nashed, MD, president and CEO of Choice Media and its subsidiaries. "By acquiring these highly respected websites, we can build on our commitment to consumers, providing credible sources of medical information to the public while offering greater advertising reach for our sponsors."