IHC Buys Full Control Over a Lead Generation Tech Firm

Independence Holding Co. — a specialty benefits insurer with a growing lead generation business — says it has acquired full control over a marketing technology firm.

The marketing technology firm uses artificial intelligence techniques to identify consumers with an especially strong interest in making purchases, IHC says.

“This acquisition will significantly enhance our ability to identify consumer intent,” Roy T.K. Thung, the IHC chief executive officer, said in a comment on the deal.

(Related: IHC Acquires a Major Medical Web Broker Entity)

IHC is a publicly traded company that’s based in Stamford, Connecticut. Subsidiaries sell products such as disability insurance, pet insurance and group life insurance.

IHC is also the parent of some high-profile lead generation websites, including HealthInsurance.org and a MedicareResources.org.

IHC says it previously had a minority stake in the technology company it acquired.

IHC has not given the name of the firm or disclosed the purchase price.

In December, IHC said that had acquired a 4% stake in Figo Pet Insurance LLC for $5 million.

IHC says in the Form 10-K annual report it filed for 2019 that its “focus will be on recruiting additional call center agents and advisors who are certified to sell Medicare, enhance our lead generation capacity, launch additional transactional websites, improve the user experience of our current direct-to-consumer domains, and introduce artificial intelligence to improve conversion rates.”

The company says it’s still looking to hire about 100 more agents for its call centers.

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