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This excerpt taken from the WBMD DEF 14A filed Nov 5, 2008. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Several key trends in the healthcare and Internet industries are
influencing the use of healthcare information services of the
types we provide or are developing. Those trends, and the
strategies we have developed in response, are described briefly
below:
WebMD 2007 Annual
Report — MD&A Annex
ANNEX B-3 –
PAGE 4
Table of Contents
The healthcare industry in the United States and relationships
among healthcare payers, providers and consumers are very
complicated. In addition, the Internet and the market for online
services are relatively new and still evolving. Accordingly,
there can be no assurance that the trends identified above will
continue or that the expected benefits to our businesses from
our responses to those trends will be achieved. In addition, the
market for healthcare information services is highly competitive
and not only are our existing competitors seeking to benefit
from these same trends, but the trends may also attract
additional competitors.
These excerpts taken from the WBMD 10-K filed Feb 29, 2008. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Several key trends in the healthcare and Internet industries are
influencing the use of healthcare information services of the
types we provide or are developing. Those trends, and the
strategies we have developed in response, are described briefly
below:
Table of Contents
The healthcare industry in the United States and relationships
among healthcare payers, providers and consumers are very
complicated. In addition, the Internet and the market for online
services are relatively new and still evolving. Accordingly,
there can be no assurance that the trends identified above will
continue or that the expected benefits to our businesses from
our responses to those trends will be achieved. In addition, the
market for healthcare information services is highly competitive
and not only are our existing competitors seeking to benefit
from these same trends, but the trends may also attract
additional competitors.
Background Information on Certain Trends and Strategies Several key trends in the healthcare and Internet industries are influencing the use of healthcare information services of the types we provide or are developing. Those trends, and the strategies we have developed in response, are described briefly below:
Table of Contents
The healthcare industry in the United States and relationships among healthcare payers, providers and consumers are very complicated. In addition, the Internet and the market for online services are relatively new and still evolving. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the trends identified above will continue or that the expected benefits to our businesses from our responses to those trends will be achieved. In addition, the market for healthcare information services is highly competitive and not only are our existing competitors seeking to benefit from these same trends, but the trends may also attract additional competitors. This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-Q filed Nov 9, 2007. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Use of the Internet by Consumers and
Physicians. The Internet has emerged as a major
communications medium and has already fundamentally changed many
sectors of the economy, including the marketing and sales of
financial services, travel, and entertainment, among others. The
Internet is also changing the healthcare industry and has
transformed how consumers and physicians find and utilize
healthcare information. As consumers are required to assume
greater financial responsibility for rising healthcare costs,
the Internet serves as a valuable resource by providing them
with immediate access to searchable and dynamic interactive
content to check symptoms, assess risks, understand diseases,
find providers and evaluate treatment options. The Internet has
also become a primary source of information for physicians
seeking to improve clinical practice and is growing relative to
traditional information sources, such as conferences, meetings
and offline journals.
Increased Online Marketing and Education Spending for
Healthcare Products. Pharmaceutical,
biotechnology and medical device companies spend large amounts
each year marketing their products and educating consumers and
physicians about them, however, only a small portion of this
amount is currently spent on online services. We believe that
these companies, which comprise the majority of our advertisers
and sponsors, are becoming increasingly aware of the
effectiveness of the Internet relative to traditional media in
providing health, clinical and product-related information to
consumers and physicians, and this increasing awareness will
result in increasing demand for our services.
Changes in Health Plan Design; Health Management
Initiatives. While overall healthcare costs have
been rising at a rapid annual rate, employers’ costs of
providing healthcare benefits to their employees have been
increasing at an even faster rate. In response to these
increases, employers are seeking to shift a greater portion of
healthcare costs onto their employees and to redefine
traditional health benefits. Employers and health plans want to
motivate their members and employees to evaluate their
healthcare decisions more carefully in order to be more
cost-effective. As employers continue to implement high
deductible and consumer-directed healthcare plans (referred to
as CDHPs) and related Health Savings Accounts (referred to as
HSAs) to achieve these goals, we believe that they will continue
to implement services like those we provide through our private
online portals. In addition, health plans and employers have
begun to recognize that encouraging the good health of their
members and employees not only benefits the members and
employees but also has financial benefits for the health plans
and employers. Accordingly, many employers and health plans have
been enhancing health management programs and taking steps to
provide healthcare information and education to employees and
members, including through online services.
Traffic to the WebMD Health Network. During
the past several years, an increasing portion of the page view
traffic to The WebMD Health Network has come from Web
sites that we own. This has resulted from increases in traffic
to sites we own and acquisitions of additional sites, as well as
from the expiration of relationships with certain third party
sites that had carried our content and had been included in
The WebMD Health Network, including the expiration of our
relationship with the AOL division of Time Warner
(“AOL”) on May 1, 2007. Under the agreement
between WebMD and AOL, WebMD had provided healthcare content,
tools and services for use on certain AOL properties. As a
result of the expiration of that agreement, the monthly unique
users and page view traffic from AOL is no longer a part of
The WebMD Health Network. Additionally, revenues and
earnings of approximately $5 million per year related to
certain contractual guarantees also ended with the expiration of
that agreement.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-Q filed Aug 9, 2007. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Use of the Internet by Consumers and
Physicians. The Internet has emerged as a major
communications medium and has already fundamentally changed many
sectors of the economy, including the marketing and sales of
financial services, travel, and entertainment, among others. The
Internet is also changing the healthcare industry and has
transformed how consumers and physicians find and utilize
healthcare information. As consumers are required to assume
greater financial responsibility for rising healthcare costs,
the Internet serves as a valuable resource by providing them
with immediate access to searchable and dynamic interactive
content to check symptoms, assess risks, understand diseases,
find providers and evaluate treatment options. The Internet has
also become a primary source of information for physicians
seeking to improve clinical practice and is growing relative to
traditional information sources, such as conferences, meetings
and offline journals.
Increased Online Marketing and Education Spending for
Healthcare Products. Pharmaceutical,
biotechnology and medical device companies spend large amounts
each year marketing their products and educating consumers and
physicians about them; however, only a small portion of this
amount is currently spent on online services. We believe that
these companies, which comprise the majority of our advertisers
and sponsors, are becoming increasingly aware of the
effectiveness of the Internet relative to traditional media in
providing health, clinical and product-related information to
consumers and physicians, and this increasing awareness will
result in increasing demand for our services.
Changes in Health Plan Design; Health Management
Initiatives. While overall healthcare costs have
been rising at a rapid annual rate, employers’ costs of
providing healthcare benefits to their employees have been
increasing at an even faster rate. In response to these
increases, employers are seeking to shift a greater portion of
healthcare costs onto their employees and to redefine
traditional health benefits. Employers and health plans want to
motivate their members and employees to evaluate their
healthcare decisions more carefully in order to be more
cost-effective. As employers continue to implement high
deductible and consumer-directed healthcare plans (referred to
as CDHPs) and related Health Savings Accounts (referred to as
HSAs) to achieve these goals, we believe that we will be able to
attract more employers and health plans to use our private
online portals. In addition, health plans and employers have
begun to recognize that encouraging the good health of their
members and employees not only benefits the members and
employees but also has financial benefits for the health plans
and employers. Accordingly, many employers and health plans have
been enhancing health management programs and taking steps to
provide healthcare information
Table of Contents
and education to employees and members, including through
online, telephonic and paper-based services. We believe that we
are well positioned to benefit from these trends because our
private portals provide the tools and information employees and
plan members need in order to make more informed decisions about
healthcare provider, benefit and treatment options.
Traffic to the WebMD Health Network. During
the past several years, an increasing portion of the page view
traffic to The WebMD Health Network has come from Web
sites that we own. However, a portion of the total page view
traffic continues to come from Web sites owned by third parties
that carry our content. During the quarter ended June 30,
2007, third party Web sites accounted for approximately 4% of
The WebMD Health Network’s aggregate page views. In
the past, an even larger percentage of the total page view
traffic had come from third party Web sites. Under an agreement
between WebMD and the AOL division of Time Warner
(“AOL”), which was entered into in May 2001 and
expired on May 1, 2007, WebMD provided healthcare content,
tools and services for use on certain AOL properties. The
monthly unique users and page view traffic from AOL was 3% and
1%, respectively, of the aggregate WebMD Health Network monthly
unique users and page view traffic for the quarter ended
June 30, 2007. As a result of the expiration of that
agreement, the monthly unique users and page view traffic from
AOL will no longer be part of the WebMD Health Network.
Additionally, revenues and earnings of approximately
$5 million per year related to certain contractual
guarantees also ended with the expiration of that agreement.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-Q filed May 10, 2007. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Use of the Internet by Consumer and
Physicians. The Internet has emerged as a major
communications medium and has already fundamentally changed many
sectors of the economy, including the marketing and sales of
financial services, travel, and entertainment, among others. The
Internet is also changing the healthcare industry and has
transformed how consumers and physicians find and utilize
healthcare information. As consumers are required to assume
greater financial responsibility for rising healthcare costs,
the Internet serves as a valuable resource by providing them
with immediate access to searchable and dynamic interactive
content to check symptoms, assess risks, understand diseases,
find providers and evaluate treatment options. The Internet has
also become a primary source of information for physicians
seeking to improve clinical practice and is growing relative to
traditional information sources such as conferences, meetings
and offline journals.
Increased Online Marketing and Education Spending for
Healthcare Products. Pharmaceutical,
biotechnology and medical device companies spend large amounts
each year marketing their products and educating consumers and
physicians about them, however, only a small portion of this
amount is currently spent on online services. We believe that
these companies, which comprise the majority of our advertisers
and sponsors, are becoming increasingly aware of the
effectiveness of the Internet relative to traditional media in
providing health, clinical and product-related information to
consumers and physicians, and this increasing awareness will
result in increasing demand for our services.
Changes in Health Plan Design; Health Management
Initiatives. While overall healthcare costs have
been rising at a rapid annual rate, employers’ costs of
providing healthcare benefits to their employees have been
increasing at an even faster rate. In response to these
increases, employers are seeking to shift a greater portion of
healthcare costs onto their employees and to redefine
traditional health benefits. Employers and health plans want to
motivate their members and employees to evaluate their
healthcare decisions more carefully in order to
Table of Contents
be more cost-effective. As employers continue to implement high
deductible and consumer-directed healthcare plans (referred to
as CDHPs) and related Health Savings Accounts (referred to as
HSAs) to achieve these goals, we believe that we will be able to
attract more employers and health plans to use our private
online portals. In addition, health plans and employers have
begun to recognize that encouraging the good health of their
members and employees not only benefits the members and
employees but also has financial benefits for the health plans
and employers. Accordingly, many employers and health plans have
been enhancing health management programs and taking steps to
provide healthcare information and education to employees and
members, including through online services. We believe that we
are well positioned to benefit from these trends because our
private portals provide the tools and information employees and
plan members need in order to make more informed decisions about
healthcare provider, benefit and treatment options.
Traffic to the WebMD Health Network. During
the past several years, an increasing portion of the page view
traffic to The WebMD Health Network has come from Web
sites that we own. However, a portion of the total page view
traffic continues to come from Web sites owned by third parties
that carry our content (including the AOL division of Time
Warner). During the quarter ended September 30, 2006, third
party Web sites accounted for approximately 6% of The WebMD
Health Network’s aggregate page views. In the past, an
even larger percentage of the total page view traffic had come
from third party Web sites. Under an agreement between WebMD and
the AOL division of Time Warner (“AOL”), which was
entered into in May 2001 and expires on May 1, 2007, WebMD
provides healthcare content, tools and services for use on
certain AOL properties. WebMD does not expect its existing
agreement with AOL to continue following the expiration of that
agreement. The monthly unique users and page view traffic from
AOL was 6% and 3%, respectively, of the aggregate WebMD Health
Network monthly unique users and page view traffic for the
quarter ended September 30, 2006. As a result of the
expiration of that agreement in May 2007, the monthly
unique users and page view traffic from AOL will no longer be
part of the WebMD Health Network. Additionally, revenues and
earnings of approximately $5 million per year related to
certain contractual guarantees will also end with the expiration
of that agreement.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-Q filed May 10, 2007. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Use of the Internet by Consumer and
Physicians. The Internet has emerged as a major
communications medium and has already fundamentally changed many
sectors of the economy, including the marketing and sales of
financial services, travel, and entertainment, among others. The
Internet is also changing the healthcare industry and has
transformed how consumers and physicians find and utilize
healthcare information. As consumers are required to assume
greater financial responsibility for rising healthcare costs,
the Internet serves as a valuable resource by providing them
with immediate access to searchable and dynamic interactive
content to check symptoms, assess risks, understand diseases,
find providers and evaluate treatment options. The Internet has
also become a primary source of information for physicians
seeking to improve clinical practice and is growing relative to
traditional information sources, such as conferences, meetings
and offline journals.
Increased Online Marketing and Education Spending for
Healthcare Products. Pharmaceutical,
biotechnology and medical device companies spend large amounts
each year marketing their products and educating consumers and
physicians about them, however, only a small portion of this
amount is currently spent on online services. We believe that
these companies, which comprise the majority of our advertisers
and sponsors, are becoming increasingly aware of the
effectiveness of the Internet relative to traditional media in
providing health, clinical and product-related information to
consumers and physicians, and that this increasing awareness
will result in increasing demand for our services.
Changes in Health Plan Design; Health Management
Initiatives. While overall healthcare costs have
been rising at a rapid annual rate, employers’ costs of
providing healthcare benefits to their employees have been
increasing at an even faster rate. In response to these
increases, employers are seeking to shift a greater portion of
healthcare costs onto their employees and to redefine
traditional health benefits. Employers and health plans want to
motivate their members and employees to evaluate their
healthcare decisions more carefully in order to be more
cost-effective. As employers continue to implement high
deductible and consumer-directed healthcare plans (referred to
as CDHPs) and related Health Savings Accounts (referred to as
HSAs) to achieve these goals, we believe that we will be able to
attract more employers and health plans to use our private
online portals. In addition, health plans and employers have
begun to recognize that encouraging the good health of their
members and employees not only benefits the members and
employees but also has financial benefits for the health plans
and employers. Accordingly, many employers and health
Table of Contents
plans have been enhancing health management programs and taking
steps to provide healthcare information and education to
employees and members, including through online services. We
believe that we are well positioned to benefit from these trends
because our private portals provide the tools and information
employees and plan members need in order to make more informed
decisions about healthcare provider, benefit and treatment
options.
Traffic to the WebMD Health Network. During
the past several years, an increasing portion of the page view
traffic to The WebMD Health Network has come from Web
sites that we own. However, a portion of the total page view
traffic continues to come from Web sites owned by third parties
that carry our content (including the AOL division of Time
Warner). During the quarter ended March 31, 2007, third
party Web sites accounted for approximately 4% of The WebMD
Health Network’s aggregate page views. In the past, an
even larger percentage of the total page view traffic had come
from third party Web sites. Under an agreement between WebMD and
the AOL division of Time Warner (“AOL”), which was
entered into in May 2001 and expired on May 1, 2007, WebMD
provided healthcare content, tools and services for use on
certain AOL properties. The monthly unique users and page view
traffic from AOL was 3% and 2%, respectively, of the aggregate
The WebMD Health Network monthly unique users and page
view traffic for the quarter ended March 31, 2007. As a
result of the expiration of that agreement, the monthly unique
users and page view traffic from AOL will no longer be part of
The WebMD Health Network. Additionally, revenues and
earnings of approximately $5 million per year related to
certain contractual guarantees will also end with the expiration
of that agreement.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-K filed May 10, 2007. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Several key trends in the healthcare and Internet industries are
influencing the use of healthcare information services of the
types we provide or are developing. Those trends, and the
strategies we have developed in response, are described briefly
below:
The healthcare industry in the United States and relationships
among healthcare payers, providers and consumers are very
complicated. In addition, the Internet and the market for online
services are relatively new and still evolving. Accordingly,
there can be no assurance that the trends identified above will
continue or that the expected benefits to our businesses from
our responses to those trends will be achieved. In addition, the
market for healthcare information services is highly competitive
and not only are our existing competitors seeking to benefit
from these same trends, but the trends may also attract
additional competitors.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-Q filed May 10, 2007. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Use of the Internet by Consumer and
Physicians. The Internet has emerged as a major
communications medium and has already fundamentally changed many
sectors of the economy, including the marketing and sales of
financial services, travel, and entertainment, among others. The
Internet is also changing the healthcare industry and has
transformed how consumers and physicians find and utilize
healthcare information. As consumers are required to assume
greater financial responsibility for rising healthcare costs,
the Internet serves as a valuable resource by providing them
with immediate access to searchable and dynamic interactive
content to check symptoms, assess risks, understand diseases,
find providers and evaluate treatment options. The Internet has
also become a primary source of information for physicians
seeking to improve clinical practice and is growing relative to
traditional information sources such as conferences, meetings
and offline journals.
Increased Online Marketing and Education Spending for
Healthcare Products. Pharmaceutical,
biotechnology and medical device companies spend large amounts
each year marketing their products and educating consumers and
physicians about them, however, only a small portion of this
amount is currently spent on online services. We believe that
these companies, who comprise the majority of our advertisers
and sponsors, are becoming increasingly aware of the
effectiveness of the Internet relative to traditional media in
providing health, clinical and product-related information to
consumers and physicians, and this increasing awareness will
result in increasing demand for our services.
Changes in Health Plan Design; Health Management
Initiatives. While overall healthcare costs have
been rising at a rapid annual rate, employers’ costs of
providing healthcare benefits to their employees have been
increasing at an even faster rate. In response to these
increases, employers are seeking to shift a greater portion of
healthcare costs onto their employees and to redefine
traditional health benefits. Employers and health plans want to
motivate their members and employees to evaluate their
healthcare decisions more carefully in order to be more
cost-effective. As employers continue to implement high
deductible and consumer-directed healthcare plans (referred to
as CDHPs) and related Health Savings Accounts (referred to as
HSAs) to achieve these goals, we believe that we will be able to
attract more employers and health plans to use our private
online portals. In addition, health plans and employers have
begun to recognize that encouraging the good health of their
members and employees not only benefits the members and
employees but also has financial benefits for the health plans
and employers. Accordingly, many employers and health plans have
been enhancing health management programs and taking steps to
provide healthcare information and education to employees and
members, including through online services. We believe that we
are well positioned to benefit from these trends because our
private portals provide the tools and information employees and
plan members need in order to make more informed decisions about
healthcare provider, benefit and treatment options.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-K filed Mar 2, 2007. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Several key trends in the healthcare and Internet industries are
influencing the use of healthcare information services of the
types we provide or are developing. Those trends, and the
strategies we have developed in response, are described briefly
below:
Table of Contents
The healthcare industry in the United States and relationships
among healthcare payers, providers and consumers are very
complicated. In addition, the Internet and the market for online
services are relatively new and still evolving. Accordingly,
there can be no assurance that the trends identified above will
continue or that the expected benefits to our businesses from
our responses to those trends will be achieved. In addition, the
market for healthcare information services is highly competitive
and not only are our existing competitors seeking to benefit
from these same trends, but the trends may also attract
additional competitors.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-Q filed Nov 13, 2006. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Use of the Internet by Consumer and
Physicians. The Internet has emerged as a major
communications medium and has already fundamentally changed many
sectors of the economy, including the marketing and sales of
financial services, travel, and entertainment, among others. The
Internet is also changing the healthcare industry and has
transformed how consumers and physicians find and utilize
healthcare information. As consumers are required to assume
greater financial responsibility for rising healthcare costs,
the Internet serves as a valuable resource by providing them
with immediate access to searchable and dynamic interactive
content to check symptoms, assess risks, understand diseases,
find providers and evaluate treatment options. The Internet has
also become a primary source of information for physicians
seeking to improve clinical practice and is growing relative to
traditional information sources such as conferences, meetings
and offline journals.
Increased Online Marketing and Education Spending for
Healthcare Products. Pharmaceutical,
biotechnology and medical device companies spend large amounts
each year marketing their products and educating consumers and
physicians about them, however, only a small portion of this
amount is currently spent on online services. We believe that
these companies, which comprise the majority of our advertisers
and sponsors, are becoming increasingly aware of the
effectiveness of the Internet relative to traditional media in
providing health, clinical and product-related information to
consumers and physicians, and this increasing awareness will
result in increasing demand for our services.
Changes in Health Plan Design; Health Management
Initiatives. While overall healthcare costs have
been rising at a rapid annual rate, employers’ costs of
providing healthcare benefits to their employees have been
increasing at an even faster rate. In response to these
increases, employers are seeking to shift a greater portion of
healthcare costs onto their employees and to redefine
traditional health benefits. Employers and health plans want to
motivate their members and employees to evaluate their
healthcare decisions more carefully in order to be more
cost-effective. As employers continue to implement high
deductible and consumer-directed healthcare plans (referred to
as CDHPs) and related Health Savings Accounts (referred to as
HSAs) to achieve these goals, we believe that we will be able to
attract more employers and health plans to use our private
online portals. In
Table of Contents
addition, health plans and employers have begun to recognize
that encouraging the good health of their members and employees
not only benefits the members and employees but also has
financial benefits for the health plans and employers.
Accordingly, many employers and health plans have been enhancing
health management programs and taking steps to provide
healthcare information and education to employees and members,
including through online services. We believe that we are well
positioned to benefit from these trends because our private
portals provide the tools and information employees and plan
members need in order to make more informed decisions about
healthcare provider, benefit and treatment options.
Traffic to the WebMD Health Network. During
the past several years, an increasing portion of the page view
traffic to The WebMD Health Network has come from Web
sites that we own. However, a portion of the total page view
traffic continues to come from Web sites owned by third parties
that carry our content (including the AOL division of Time
Warner). During the quarter ended September 30, 2006, third
party Web sites accounted for approximately 6% of The WebMD
Health Network’s aggregate page views. In the past, an
even larger percentage of the total page view traffic had come
from third party Web sites. Under an agreement between WebMD and
the AOL division of Time Warner (“AOL”), which was
entered into in May 2001 and expires on May 1, 2007, WebMD
provides healthcare content, tools and services for use on
certain AOL properties. WebMD does not expect its existing
agreement with AOL to continue following the expiration of that
agreement. The monthly unique users and page view traffic from
AOL was 6% and 3%, respectively, of the aggregate WebMD Health
Network monthly unique users and page view traffic for the
quarter ended September 30, 2006. As a result of the
expiration of that agreement in May 2007, the monthly
unique users and page view traffic from AOL will no longer be
part of the WebMD Health Network. Additionally, revenues and
earnings of approximately $5 million per year related to
certain contractual guarantees will also end with the expiration
of that agreement.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-Q filed Aug 9, 2006. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Use of the Internet by Consumer and
Physicians. The Internet has emerged as a major
communications medium and has already fundamentally changed many
sectors of the economy, including the marketing and sales of
financial services, travel, and entertainment, among others. The
Internet is also changing the healthcare industry and has
transformed how consumers and physicians find and utilize
healthcare information. As
Table of Contents
consumers are required to assume greater financial
responsibility for rising healthcare costs, the Internet serves
as a valuable resource by providing them with immediate access
to searchable and dynamic interactive content to check symptoms,
assess risks, understand diseases, find providers and evaluate
treatment options. The Internet has also become a primary source
of information for physicians seeking to improve clinical
practice and is growing relative to traditional information
sources such as conferences, meetings and offline journals.
Increased Online Marketing and Education Spending for
Healthcare Products. Pharmaceutical,
biotechnology and medical device companies spend large amounts
each year marketing their products and educating consumers and
physicians about them, however, only a small portion of this
amount is currently spent on online services. We believe that
these companies, who comprise the majority of our advertisers
and sponsors, are becoming increasingly aware of the
effectiveness of the Internet relative to traditional media in
providing health, clinical and product-related information to
consumers and physicians, and this increasing awareness will
result in increasing demand for our services.
Changes in Health Plan Design; Health Management
Initiatives. While overall healthcare costs have
been rising at a rapid annual rate, employers’ costs of
providing healthcare benefits to their employees have been
increasing at an even faster rate. In response to these
increases, employers are seeking to shift a greater portion of
healthcare costs onto their employees and to redefine
traditional health benefits. Employers and health plans want to
motivate their members and employees to evaluate their
healthcare decisions more carefully in order to be more
cost-effective. As employers continue to implement high
deductible and consumer-directed healthcare plans (referred to
as CDHPs) and related Health Savings Accounts (referred to as
HSAs) to achieve these goals, we believe that we will be able to
attract more employers and health plans to use our private
online portals. In addition, health plans and employers have
begun to recognize that encouraging the good health of their
members and employees not only benefits the members and
employees but also has financial benefits for the health plans
and employers. Accordingly, many employers and health plans have
been enhancing health management programs and taking steps to
provide healthcare information and education to employees and
members, including through online services. We believe that we
are well positioned to benefit from these trends because our
private portals provide the tools and information employees and
plan members need in order to make more informed decisions about
healthcare provider, benefit and treatment options.
This excerpt taken from the WBMD 10-K filed Mar 16, 2006. Background
Information on Certain Trends and Strategies
Several key trends in the healthcare and Internet industries are
influencing the use of healthcare information services of the
types we provide or are developing. Those trends, and the
strategies we have developed in response, are described briefly
below:
Table of Contents
The healthcare industry in the United States and relationships
among healthcare payers, providers and consumers are very
complicated. In addition, the Internet and the market for online
services are relatively new and still evolving. Accordingly,
there can be no assurance that the trends identified above will
continue or that the expected benefits to our businesses from
our responses to those trends will be achieved. In addition, the
market for healthcare information services is highly competitive
and not only are our existing competitors seeking to benefit
from these same trends, but the trends may also attract
additional competitors.
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