Wolters Kluwer Completes Acquisition of NDCHealth Information Management Business

Information Management Products Extend Wolters Kluwer’s Pharmaceutical Information Leadership and Give Customers a Greater Depth of Business Intelligence Solutions

Amsterdam (January 6, 2006) - Wolters Kluwer, a leading multinational publisher and information services company, today announced it has completed the acquisition of the NDCHealth Information Management business. The Information Management (IM) business is now a part of Wolters Kluwer Health’s Pharma Solutions unit and all IM products are adopting the brand name Source®, reflecting the unique business intelligence strength these tools offer biotech and pharmaceutical manufacturers.


Wolters Kluwer’s intent to acquire NDCHealth Information Management, a leading provider of pharmaceutical data and business intelligence products, was announced on August 29, 2005, with the acquisition completed today after the Per-Se Technologies and NDCHealth shareholders agreed to the acquisition on January 5. Anti-trust authorities had earlier approved the acquisition.

Wolters Kluwer CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board Nancy McKinstry said, “This acquisition fully supports our strategic focus for the Health division. By incorporating NDCHealth Information Management into our existing business, Wolters Kluwer can grow significantly as a provider of solutions and tools that biotech, pharmaceutical and medical device customers need to make informed decisions about their critical marketing and product development strategies.”


“We are committed to serving the current needs of IM’s customers while investing in the analytical data solutions they’ll need moving forward,” said Jeff McCaulley, CEO of Wolters Kluwer Health. “Adding the newly-named Source product portfolio to our intelligence products in drug discovery and development provides the foundation for a powerful suite of value-added content tools that will help our customers be more successful in their markets.”


NDCHealth Information Management’s 384 employees, based primarily in Phoenix, Arizona, are now a part of Wolters Kluwer Health’s Pharma Solutions unit.



Source Product Lines


The Wolters Kluwer Health Pharma Solutions unit is expanding its leadership in content for drug development and product management by offering more business intelligence databases and customized services. The incorporation of the Source product line complements this strategy, allowing Wolters Kluwer Health to extend its content and business intelligence product line across drug discovery, development and distribution.

The Source market data and advanced analytic portfolio enables biotech and pharmaceutical manufacturers to be more competitive and profitable. By providing the competitive drug prescribing and usage pattern information they need to better target sales and marketing efforts, manufacturers can more effectively pursue market opportunities for their products. In addition to industry-leading physician-level data products, Source also includes solutions in the emerging and high-growth market for anonymous patient level data. This unique data set combines information from across the entire spectrum of care over time (longitudinal data) to provide manufacturers with more comprehensive, actionable information than is otherwise available.



Terms of Acquisition


The acquisition took place at the agreed-upon purchase price of $382 million, paid in cash. This represents approximately a multiple of 2.3 times the IM group’s anticipated 2005 revenues, and 10.6 times its adjusted EBITDA1. The acquisition is expected to be accretive to ordinary earnings per share in 2006 by approximately 3 euro cents.

Wolters Kluwer acquired NDCHealth Information Management from NDCHealth Corporation. The remainder of NDCHealth was secured by Per-Se Technologies.


1 Adjusted EBITDA = Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortization, restructuring costs and including expected cost synergies in general and administrative functions.



Forward-Looking Statements


This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements may be identified by words such as “expect”, “should”, “could”, “shall”, and similar expressions. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results and events could differ materially from what is contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Factors which could cause actual results to differ from these forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, general economic conditions, conditions in the markets in which Wolters Kluwer is engaged, behavior of customers, suppliers and competitors, technological developments, legal and regulatory rules affecting Wolters Kluwer’s businesses and other risks and uncertainties regarding the timing and closing of the transactions described above, including the risk that the acquisition fails to close. In addition, financial risks, such as currency movements, interest rate fluctuations, liquidity and credit risks could influence future results. The foregoing list of factors should not be construed as exhaustive. Wolters Kluwer disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.


About Wolters Kluwer Health


Wolters Kluwer Health (Conshohocken, Pa.) is a leading provider of information for professionals and students in medicine, nursing, allied health, pharmacy and the pharmaceutical industry. Major brands include Lippincott Williams & Wilkins and Facts & Comparisons for medical and drug reference tools and textbooks; Ovid Technologies, Medi-Span and SKOLAR for electronic information; and Adis International and Source for pharmaceutical information.

Wolters Kluwer is a leading multinational publisher and information services company. The Company’s core markets are spread across the health, corporate services, financial services, tax, accounting, law, regulation, and education sectors. Wolters Kluwer has annual revenues (2004) of €3.3 billion, employs approximately 18,400 people worldwide and maintains operations across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Its depositary receipts of shares are quoted on the Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices. For more information, see www.wolterskluwer.com.

Contact Information

Caroline Wouters

Vice President, Corporate Communications

Wolters Kluwer nv

Contact via E-mail