Morris Levitt, managing director, life sciences, of media investment
bank DeSilva & Phillips, said Elsevier’s ongoing acquisition
strategy is “two sides of the coin” as it pertains to Reed Elsevier’s
recent decision to put its print-heavy Reed Business Information
portfolio on the block. “Clearly, Reed doesn’t see a great future for
RBI,” he said. “At the same time they see value in health care
information services and are being aggressive in investing in that
area.”
Levitt added: “As things evolve in an electronic direction,they
have to diversify and can’t rely on an old stable of print journals,
which nevertheless remains a strong business.”