New York. NY, September 6. 2006 - Thompson Publishing Group (TPG”), a leading provider of subscription based information services, announced that it successfully acquired American Health Consultants (“AHC”), a leading provider of healthcare information products, from The Thomson Corporation (NYSE:TOC; TSX:TOC). The acquisition, completed on August 31, 2006, combines TPG’s strong position in financial services, human resources, education and grants with AHC‘s healthcare and biotech products. The combined company has a diverse portfolio of publications and services representing more than 350 print and electronic products as well as hundreds of conferences serving approximately 135,000 customers.
“The AHC team has done a great job building the business and we are committed to fostering its continued growth,” said Phil Gabel, the CEO of TPG. “In addition to its strong asset base. which includes such well known titles as Hospital Infection Control. Emergency Medicine Reports and BioWorld Today,
AHC has strong management, writers and editorial professionals and we are excited to have them join our team at Thompson Publishing.”
Tyler Zachem, a Managing Director at MidOcean Partners, said, ‘The AHC acquisition is a continuation of our focused build up in subscription based business to business publishing. AHC has a long and successful history, and we are very pleased to have the opportunity to bring it into TPG and invest in its continued growth, both in print and online.”
“We think the AHC acquisition is a great strategic fit for TPG,” said James Finkelstein, Chairman of TPG and a partner at Avista Capital Partners. “With this new acquisition TPG now has a particularly strong market presence in three huge areas of the American economy: finance, human resources and now healthcare. Providing multi-platform knowledge and solutions to these and users will continue the growth we have already experienced.”
Ohsang Kwon, a partner at Avista, added, “The whole health area continues lo be an attractive media opportunity, and the fact that it is in the some kind of subscription business clearly provides synergies in marketing, management, as well as further opportunity for investment.”
Paul Hilger, executive vice president and CFO of Thomson Healthcare, said, “In TPG, we found a buyer with the strategic focus to support AHC as it continues to grow.” Tim Billings, a principal at MidOcean, added, “Thomson has done a great job with AHC and we look forward to working with AHC’s dedicated employees to provide new and enhanced products and services for our customers.”
Berkery Noyes & Co. LLC served as financial adviser in the transaction.
MidOcean acquired TPG in May 2004 in partnership with CSFB Merchant Banking. In August 2006, Avista acquired CSFB’s interest in TPG.
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About Thompson Publishing Group
Thompson Publishing Group, a Washington, D.C.-based information services provider, has been a leading source of analysis and guidance for business and government executives since 1972. Professionals rely on Thompson for help in tracking, and complying with, the dynamic regulatory mandates facing their organizations in a variety of areas including financials services; human resources; pensions and benefits; grants seeking and grants management; education, including Title I; FDA; environment and energy; and healthcare. More information can be found on their website: www.thompson.com
About AHC
AHC, the largest publisher of healthcare newsletters in the world, began in 1974 with a single title, Hospital Infection Control and has grown in the quarter century since to more than 50 titles serving a broad spectrum of professionals in health care. AHC’s incisive, useful, up-to-date publications are read by more than 50,000 people per month in the fields of clinical medicine, healthcare management, and biotechnology and medical devices. Our leading titles include Emergency Medicine Reports, Same-Day Surgery, BioWorld Today, Internal Medicine Alert, The BBI Newsletter and many more. In addition to its newsletters, AHC publishes dozens of sourcebooks in a variety of healthcare topics and convenes conferences in key areas from emergency medicine to hospital case management. In addition, AHC is a growing electronic publisher, offering users a host of online, disk and CD-ROM products.
About Avista
Avista Capital Partners is a leading private equity firm with offices in New York, NY and Houston, TX. Founded in 2005, Avista’s strategy is to make controlling or influential minority investments primarily in growth-oriented media, healthcare and energy companies. Through its team of seasoned investment professionals and industry experts, Avista seeks to partner with exceptional management teams to invest in and add value to well-positioned businesses. www.avista.com.
About MidOcean Partners
MidOcean Partners is a premier New York-based alternative asset manager that specializes in middle market private equity and alternative credit investments. Since its inception in 2003, MidOcean Private Equity has managed over $4.5 billion of committed capital and has targeted investments in high-quality middle market companies in the consumer and business services sectors. MidOcean Credit Partners was launched in 2009 and manages approximately $8 billion across a series of alternative credit strategies, collateralized loan obligations (CLOs), and customized separately managed accounts as of November 30, 2018
MidOcean Media Relations Contacts
Nathaniel Garnick/Amanda Klein
Gasthalter & Co.
212-257-4170
midocean@gasthalter.com
MidOcean Investor Relations Contact
MidOcean Partners
IR@midoceanpartners.com