It'll take more than a pretty face, Dr. Koop-
Get rich quick scheme of the
week: Web doctors
By Tom Davey
Redherring.com
October 1, 1999
Dreaming of an eight-figure net worth but don't have
the talent of Tiger Woods or the business savvy of Bill
Gates?
Then here's a plan: Put on a white
lab coat, dangle a stethoscope
around your neck, and get some
face time with TV cameras. Take
a plunge to that final frontier of
medicine -- the Internet -- and
start dispensing medical advice.
Already, several high-profile
physicians have aimed for the
ultimate financial elixir: an IPO. For example, Dr. Dean
Edell, a medical icon with nationally-syndicated TV
and radio shows, has 2.6 million shares in
Healthcentral.com, which is still private. Dr. Edell's
grinning mug on the site's home page says it all. His
shares, which have risen rapidly with new rounds of
funding, are now worth an estimated $12 million.
When the stock goes public -- probably in November
-- expect his shares to at least double in value.
Former surgeon general Dr. C.
Everett Koop, holds 2.5 million
shares of Drkoop.com (Nasdaq:
KOOP) stock, currently worth an
estimated $36 million. Viewers
must click past the home page of
Drkoop.com to find a photo of
the good doctor. It's not hard to
understand why he looks less happy than Dr. Edell.
Drkoop.com went public in July, quickly accelerating
to $45.75 a share. At least for a few minutes, Dr.
Koop's equity peaked at about $118 million.
Dr. Nancy Snyderman, who appears on "Good
Morning America" and "20/20", also "flew the koop,"
-- medical humor for riding a Web stock to new
heights. Without Dr. Snyderman's knowledge, her
husband tried to dump some Drkoop.com stock when
it was high. Regulators, who restrict the timing of
insider sales, made the couple pay back the $50,000
gain. She shouldn't worry though. Even at their
currently depressed price, her 367,000 shares are
worth $5.1 million.
A TOUGH JOB
Wannabes hoping for medical Web stardom should
focus on the following: First, they must be skilled at
distilling complex concepts to simple language, such as
explaining the difference between malignant and benign
melanoma to a fourth grader. Second, because Web
sites typically have pictures, appearance is critical. If
your face is made for radio rather than pictures, a little
plastic surgery will do wonders for your marketability.
Third, it helps to be a licensed physician.
With these credentials, hooking up with a Web site
shouldn't be hard. Some experts estimate that there are
at least 15,000 medical Web sites. Most of these niche
sites will never be well known because they are tied to
obscure medical journals, specific diseases, and wacky
individuals.
Even among the handful of sites that are poised for
success, several have yet to hire a medical-media
personality. These key sites could use the credibility
boost of a sympathetic and unassuming doctor.
For example, Medscape.com (Nasdaq: MSCP) has a
great marketing relationship with CBS (NYSE: CBS),
which owns a quarter of the company. If you're
looking for second opinions on a malignant tumor, Dan
Rather won't be the first person who comes to mind.
Healtheon-WebMD (Nasdaq: HELTH), another
potent medical portal, has the backing of Microsoft but
lacks the firepower of a star figure. Intelihealth.com
also could use some star power. It currently has "Ask
the Doc," a column in which specialists dispense
medical advice, but the site lacks a focus on a single
name.
Venture capitalists have pushed gurney-loads of cash
to these and many other sites. Many sites are still
waiting in line to swallow the IPO sugar pill. Plenty of
cash-hemorrhaging day traders hope that injecting their
money into the likes of Drkoop.com will revive their
ailing brokerage accounts. |
