International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) has just announced that they have agreed to buy Merge Healthcare, Inc., a leading provider of medical image handling and processing, interoperability and clinical systems designed to advance health care quality and efficiency, for $1 billion, according to a press release issued by IBM.
IBM will combine Merge with its Watson Health analytics unit to allow it to "see".
The deal will bolster IBM's strategy to add "rich image analytics with deep learning" to Watson Health platform, according to the press release.
The combination will advance Watson beyond just language and allow it to "see."
IBM is planning to use the Watson Health Cloud as leverage to analyze and cross-reference medical images against several storages of data, electronic health records, genomic tests, clinical studies and other health-related data sources, according to the press release.
These health-related data sources already account for 315 billion data points and 90 million unique records.
Reuters adds that IBM's Cloud-based Watson computing system is used for analyzing high volumes of data, understanding complex questions posed in natural language and provides answers based on evidence.
The Watson Health Cloud will allow Merge's clients to compare new medical images with a patient's image history as well as populations of similar patients to detect changes and anomalies, according to the press release.
Health care providers in fields like radiology, cardiology, orthopedics and ophthalmology will then be able to pursue a more personalized approach to diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of patients, using the insights generated by Watson, the press release adds.
The transaction, which is subject to regulatory review, Merge shareholder approval, and other customary closing conditions, is anticipated to close later this year.
Merge's shareholders will receive $7.13 per share in cash, under the terms of the agreement, according to the press release.
Reuters adds that Merge Healthcare shares were up $7, a 29.5 percent increase in early trading last Thursday, August 6, 2015. IBM shares were slightly changed at $156.78.
In addition, the report mentioned that the equity portion of the offer is valued at about $731.1 million. The calculations are based on 100 million Merge Healthcare shares outstanding as of June 30.
