Thomson Scientific Gets Innovative With New Launch

Thomson Scientific, a unit of The Thomson Corp., this week launched Thomson Innovation, an intellectual property research and analysis solution. This new tool will enable researchers to simultaneously search worldwide editorially enhanced patent data, Asian patent data translated into English, scientific literature and business and news sources.

Thomson collaborated with more than 1,800 customers to design the new product. As a result, these customers will receive the ability to search patents and scientific literature at the same time. They will also have access to expanded Asian patent coverage, which includes translations of Japanese full-text and additional editorially enhanced abstracts of Chinese data. Also part of the product is a fully integrated searchable database that combines the Derwent World Patent Index with full-text patent data.

Thomson Innovation also supports strategic intellectual property decisions through analysis and visualization tools, such as charting, citation mapping and search result ranking as well as the integration of business and news resources. The tool also boasts enhanced collaboration capabilities, such as customizable folder structures that enable users to organize, annotate, search and share files.

Thomson Innovation will be launched in phases, with the first release (with global, full-text patent sources, including Japan), currently available. This will be followed by the inclusion of Derwent World Patent Index, scientific literature, business information and news. Additional enhancements are slated to launch during 2008.

Integrated. Global. Two words that mean so much today. Thomson Innovation is truly a collaboration of the two. Customers today demand integrated solutions that enable them to accomplish their goals in one place without the need to move from one platform to another. This is obviously a great thing for service providers because it's a model that can naturally help boost customer retention and loyalty. Simply put: if customers can get everything they need from your company all in one place, they won’t be motivated to seek out the services of a competitor.

Creating this product with global content is also a smart move by Thomson. In a press release announcing the launch, Thomson noted an increase in patenting activity in Asia. So clearly, the market is there for this international content. Because the Internet continues to eliminate borders, more and more online services will continue to launch with global components. It is quickly becoming the rule, not the exception.

LexisNexis Launches New Martindale Site

LexisNexis last week announced the launch of a new martindale.com website. The site boasts many new features, such as Web 2.0 enhancements that include knowledge sharing abilities and the capability to personalize data. These enhancements signify the beginning of new products and services that LexisNexis Practice Solutions (and Martindale-Hubbell) has planned for its customers in the next year.

Martindale.com also features a client review service that enables corporate counsel to rate their experiences with outside counsel. The new tool is based on confidential client surveys and provides third-party insights on a variety of criteria (quality of legal service, value for money and likelihood of recommending a firm for a legal matter according to practice area, industry or geographic area. The client review offering also supplies data to help inside counsel and co-counsel build law firm shortlists, corroborate personal recommendations, identify a firm in an unfamiliar jurisdiction or when no reliable personal recommendation exists, and to justify crucial decisions.

The site has additional functions that allow users to find even more detailed information about firms and attorneys. One such feature is "My Martindale Network," which gives corporate counsel the tools necessary to create and manage their own personalized preferred provider lists.

LexisNexis and its Martindale brand are definitely among the most prominent players in the legal information space. But LexisNexis has never rested on its laurels. The company is known for continually updating its offerings to better serve its customers and maintain its strength in the legal marketplace. For that reason, this particular launch is not surprising; nor is it surprising that the company announced that the launch is just the beginning of things to come. LexisNexis seems to be in tune with what its customers want; and these latest Martindale.com enhancements signify that. It will be interesting to see what makes news at the company over the next year. Chances are, LexisNexis won’t disappoint.

InsideView Taking Steps to Become Stronger Business Information Provider

InsideView, a provider of intelligence for sales and marketing companies, announced last week its plans to acquire TrueAdvantage, which also provides sales intelligence. TrueAdvantage customers will be migrated to InsideView's application, while current InsideView customers will notice enhancements to their current services as a result of the acquisition.

InsideView's key selling point is its Web 2.0-based technology that yields more complete information for customers. It enables sales and marketing professionals to gain better insight into a company's structure--and learn who the best possible contact are--from data culled from sources such as blogs, social networks and forums.

InsideView certainly isn't as well known as other players in the business information space, even with this unique slant on marketing intelligence. Perhaps all it needs is the added strength of TrueAdvantage to propel its offering into the mainstream. With the ever-increasing popularity of Web 2.0 technology, InsideView is definitely positioned for success. Time will tell if TrueAdvantage will help the company get there.

NADAguides.com Offers 24/7 Access to Online Database

NADAguides.com has launched an automated manufactured housing valuation tool that enables buyers and sellers of mobile/manufactured homes immediate online access to the company's database of values.

Individuals interested in mobile/manufactured home properties can access the database 24 hours a day, seven days a week by logging onto the manufactured homes section of NADAguides.com, completing a short questionnaire and paying a $20 fee. They will receive a detailed value appraisal report that outlines base structure value, state location adjustments and condition adjustments.

According to NADAguides.com officials, the creation of this offering is in response to customer demand; and that many unauthorized third-party websites were using NADAguides.com information to produce their own reports; information that NADAguides.com felt was inaccurate. This also prompted the company to launch this service on its own.

It certainly makes sense for NADAguides.com to deliver this content in a convenient manner for its customers. Consumers interested in the purchase or sale of mobile/manufactured homes are not likely to conduct their research only during regular business hours, so they need a service that is accessible whenever they're ready to use it. This is a perfect example how practically any content can be adapted to serve today's 24/7 demand for information--after all, N.A.D.A. has been offering such information about mobile/manufactured homes since 1973.

Because the company has such a long track record and strong brand recognition, customers will probably prefer to access this content directly from the source instead of from third-party content providers. So it shouldn't be difficult to direct those users to NADAguides.com to access the new tool. Traffic to NADAguides.com will undoubtedly increase as a result.

Thomson Healthcare Launches Assessment Tool

Thomson Healthcare has launched Physician Performance Assessment, an application that health plans, regional health collaboratives and other organizations use to evaluate the quality and cost of medical care. Physician Performance Assessment evaluates whether medical care follows established clinical guidelines while it accounts for the severity and duration of the medical condition being treated. It generates reports that inform physicians and physician networks about gaps in patient care so they know which areas need improvement and they can increase their focus on those particular facets of the process.

Specifically, the tool accounts for the severity of a patient's condition, thus leveling the playing field for doctors with sicker patients so the receive fair comparisons to their peers. It also evaluates physician performance from a clinical point of view, while assessing the use of healthcare resources (focusing on quality of care, not just cost). Physician Performance Assessment also uses measures of physician performance developed by the National Quality Forum, The National Committee for Quality Assurance and the AQA (formerly the Ambulatory Care Quality Alliance).

This product seems to emphasize Thomson Healthcare's commitment to providing products and services that ensure the quality of healthcare services. This particular tool is interesting in that it is designed to make sure all parties in the healthcare process, from insureds, employers and physicians, are on the same page regarding medical care; and that they are focusing on the quality of services offered, not just cost part of the equation.

Because the application can measure these different variables, it should garner much interest in the healthcare community. A tool that addresses such a wide range of concerns has the potential to be well-received in this marketplace. It could lead to some very positive changes in the healthcare industry.