Sharecare Acquires The Little Blue Book Physician Reference

(Atlanta, GA – January 17, 2012) – Sharecare, an interactive health and wellness social platform providing people with access to expert-developed answers, information and programs to live their healthiest life, today announced that it has secured $14 million growth equity financing led by Galen Partners along with TomorrowVentures, LLC. The proceeds of the financing will enable Sharecare to accelerate the development of innovative programs, services and tools that foster healthier living and unite people across the healthcare continuum to deliver and receive optimal care.

Additionally, Sharecare also acquired The Little Blue Book (TLBB) from Galen Partners and a group of other investors in exchange for Sharecare common stock. TLBB has been the leading physician practice reference for over 23 years with over 400,000 physicians and 180,000 physician practices in TLBB’s database. People will soon be able to access TLBB’s physician practice information on Sharecare in order to locate physicians, practices, and hospitals in their area, as well as make informed decisions about which caregiver can best address their specific health issues and needs. Sharecare plans to quickly migrate TLBB’s physicians to its digital platform, providing each physician access to Sharecare’s suite of provider-focused products to enhance their practices, such as digital business cards, lead generation and search optimization tools and access to SharecarePro, Sharecare’s upcoming expert membership product.

The company’s Board of Directors also announced that the Chairman and Chief Architect of Sharecare, Jeff Arnold, will formally expand his role as CEO to steward the continued growth and success of the company. As part of the transaction, David Jahns, Managing Partner of Galen Partners, will join Sharecare’s Board of Directors.

“We are very proud of the progress we’ve made this past year in building an online health and wellness ecosystem by providing trusted information, actionable evidence-based programs and online support and tools for healthcare consumers and providers,” said Jeff Arnold, Chairman and CEO of Sharecare. “I’m excited to serve as CEO of the company and to welcome Galen Partners and TomorrowVentures to our prestigious group of shareholders and industry partners. Galen’s knowledge of, and reputation in, the healthcare industry make them an ideal partner for innovation and growth.”

“The founding partners and group of industry leaders involved in Sharecare have built a transformative platform with significant momentum. We believe that Sharecare’s vision of enabling online industry collaboration by leveraging new technologies to improve communication and care while reducing cost and improving outcomes will have a measurable impact on our healthcare system,” said David Jahns. “We look forward to collaborating with the team to help shape the future of health and wellness delivery.”

You can find the entire press release here.

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