MS Steps Into Consumer Health Search Arena

Microsoft has announced the acquisition of Medstory Inc., a Web search technology firm, for health information. The acquisition represents Microsoft’s attempt to enter the consumer health search arena and signals a long-term commitment toward the development of a broader consumer health strategy.

Medstory employees will join the Health Solutions Group, a recently formed division at Microsoft that will manage product development and delivery. Financial terms were not disclosed, as part of the agreement between the organizations.

Unlike results from most search engines, Medstory’s results are based on intuitive search technology, which provides prequalified information to consumers and health professionals conducting health-related research. This approach provides users with guides to help refine and better target their searches. Also, users receive organized content that is more relevant to their search criteria and that enables better health-related decisions.

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Peter Neupert, corporate vice president for health strategy and leader of the Health Solutions Group At Microsoft, “We were impressed with the ability of Medstory’s unique technology to organize and surface the most relevant online health content, which empowers consumers who are trying to find the right information about an important life event.”

Dr. Alain Rappaport, M.D., Ph.D., CEO and founder of Medstory said, “Instead of trying to force people to think in terms of the way a computer searches, we’re enabling computers to more intuitively conduct searches in the way that people think. With Microsoft’s global reach and experience, I look forward to this soon becoming a standard for online searches in health and medicine.”