TheBody logoWell, since they still haven’t posted anything on their own website about this, I found it newsworthy this past week that TheBody.com has been sold:

The HealthCentral Network Acquires TheBody.com, the Number One Interactive Resource for HIV Communities (source)

My congrats to my number one competitor since the day I launched AIDSmeds.com -- TheBody’s founder, Jamie Marks. He and Bonnie Goldman, their Editorial Director, built a great site, which constantly pushed me and Tim Horn to work harder on AIDSmeds. I hope Bonnie stays on, as she’s become a great asset to people living with HIV that look for help on the Web.

Even though TheBody has a bigger audience, mostly due to its much earlier launch and thus higher Google search rankings, I still think we beat their pants off when it comes to providing easy-to-read and up-to-date treatment info. There are already some comments about our differences in a thread in our forums (which are widely considered the best and busiest HIV-related forums online).

Of note in this sale is that the new owners are largely backed by venture capital. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but I think it’s a first with HIV-related websites.

And one of The HealthCentral Network’s newest investors is IAC/InteractiveCorp, Barry Diller’s company. Diller and I got to know each other in the early 1990’s through my boyfriend at the time, Kevin Sessums (author of Mississippi Sissy).

Besides investing in HealthCentral, Diller also joined their board. Welcome to my neighborhood, Barry!