LONDON (ShareCast) - (ShareCast News) - IBM has agreed to acquire healthcare data group Truven Health Analytics for $2.6bn (£1.8bn).
It said Truven will give the IBM Watson Health portfolio access to more than 8,500 clients, including US federal and state government agencies, employers, health plans, hospitals, clinicians and life sciences companies.

IBM said that upon completion, which is expected later this year, its health cloud will house one of the world's largest and most diverse collections of health-related data, representing an aggregate of around 300m patient lives acquired from three companies.

The US technology firm plans to integrate Truven's cloud-based data set with its existing data sets.

Deborah DiSanzo, general manager for IBM Watson Health, said: "With this acquisition, IBM will be one of the world's leading health data, analytics and insights companies, and the only one that can deliver the unique cognitive capabilities of the Watson platform.

"Truven's impressive team, extensive client roster, and expansive data sets complement Watson Health's broad-based team, capabilities and offerings. Together, we're well positioned to scale globally and to build first-in-class offerings designed to help our clients apply cognitive insights in a value-based care environment."

At 1528 GMT, IBM shares were up 4.7% to $131.48.

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