Moe Levitt to Lead Healthcare Communications Practice for DeSilva+Phillips Media Investment Bankers

DeSilva+Phillips, Media Investment Bankers, has named Morris "Moe" Levitt to lead its active healthcare communications practice, providing M&A advisory services to medical and healthcare publlishers, CME providers, marketing services companies and others. Dr. Levitt was formerly founder and CEO of Bio-IT World, a division of IDG, and a senior executive at Advanstar and PennWell. DeSilva+Phillips is the leading investment bank for the healthcare communications industry.

New York, NY (PRWEB) May 4, 2007 -- DeSilva + Phillips is pleased to announce that Morris R. Levitt, Ph.D. -- known to all as Moe Levitt -- has joined us as Managing Director, Life Sciences. Moe will be leading our thriving practice in M&A advisory to companies in healthcare and life science communications and marketing, healthcare events and related fields.

In 2001, capping an already distinguished career in the sciences and in healthcare media, Moe Levitt founded and was the CEO of Bio-IT World, Inc., an IDG media company focusing on information technology, informatics and advanced research techniques in genomic science and related fields. Its properties included Bio-IT World magazine, Health-IT World newsletter and the Bio-IT World Conference and Expo. He later coordinated their sale in 2006 to Cambridge Healthtech Institute.

Before that, his career highlights included executive positions as EVP and COO of the Healthcare, Pharmaceutical and Science Division of Advanstar Communications; and EVP and COO, Advanced Technology Division (ATD), PennWell Corp. Earlier at PennWell he was a Group Publisher and editor/publisher of Laser Focus. He also founded Medical Laser Industry Report and its annual medical laser market conference.

As a longtime figure in the technology and medical communications industry, Moe also served as a Director of BPA International and a member of the strategy committee of American Business Media.

Dr. Levitt's academic degrees are from Case Western Reserve (B.S.) and Columbia University (M.A. and Ph.D. in physics) and he has taught at CUNY Queens and SUNY Purchase.

Roland DeSilva, Managing Partner of DeSilva + Phillips, said: "Our firm has always been the leading M&A advisor to healthcare media companies. Moe joins us at a time when we have been busier than ever. We're not only glad that he has decided to join us, but proud that our current and future clients will be working with a professional of Moe's reputation and accomplishments. He has been a leading executive, a notably successful and trailblazing entrepreneur and a dealmaker in this demanding corner of the media world."

About DeSilva + Phillips, Media Investment Bankers
DeSilva + Phillips is a New York-based investment bank specializing in the media and digital media industries. We provide M&A services and private placements of debt and equity to the medical and healthcare media, magazine, Internet, newspaper, book publishing, trade shows & events, information, educational and marketing-services industries. DeSilva + Phillips has completed more than 165 transactions since 1996. DeSilva + Phillips Corporate Finance LLC is a member of NASD and SIPC. For more information visit Mediabankers.com.

DeSilva + Phillips transactions in healthcare communications include the sale of Physicians Practice LLC to CMPMedica, the sale of five clinical and news publications owned by Jobson Medical Information to Quadrant HealthComm, Vestar Capital Partners' purchase of MediMedia from Cinven, The Carlyle Group and Apax Partners and the sale of Physicians Weekly to M|C Communications.

###