WebMD buys German health information company coliquio

WebMD Health Corp. is acquiring coliquio, a digital medical information company for German-speaking health professionals. 

Coliquio is used by doctors to share educational content and will be added to WebMD's flagship brand, Medscape.

WebMD Health Corp is one of the largest providers of online health information services, with Medscape and its affiliate network of platforms currently reaching over 5 million physicians worldwide. Over 4 million of these physicians are based outside the US.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an increased consumption of online medical content, with companies like coliquio experiencing a rise in membership.

coliquio said its telemedicine and doctor-patient offering medflex is not part of the acquisition and will remain independent, operated by Germany-based medflex GmbH.

The deal is expected to close by the end of the year, subject to regulatory approval. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Jeremy Schneider, senior vice president at WebMD Global said coliquio's platform was an "excellent" addition to its global presence. "Together, we can leverage our combined strengths to extend our reach and engagement to healthcare professionals in Europe and increase our value to customers through our best-in-class digital channels."

Earlier this year, WebMD bought employee wellbeing firm, The StayWell Company, a subsidiary of US-based Merck & Co. The company's products include its core StayWell employee wellbeing platform and the Krames clinical patient education platform.