Riverdeep yesterday laid claim to the title of global leader in the kindergarten-through-high-school education software market with the acquisition of the education division of The Learning Company, a US publisher of school education software with the largest installed base in the world.
The education software firm which has headquarters in Dublin and Cambridge, Massachusetts has agreed to pay $40 million in stock and assume $20 million in debt in exchange for the education assets of The Learning Company, owned by Gores Technology Group of Los Angeles.
"The addition of TLC's household brands will enable Riverdeep to capture the coveted position of global leader in the education software market and lay claim to the title Riverdeep - The Learning Company," said Barry O'Callaghan, Riverdeep's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer in a statement.
"Integrating TLC into our business will significantly expand our revenues, user base and the breadth of our product offerings in our various markets," he said.
The assets acquired include The Learning Company name, and its education software brands such as Reader Rabbit, Carmen Sandiego, ClueFinders, Oregon Trail, Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing and Zoombinis.
Riverdeep will also have the development and distribution resources associated with these assets.
As part of the deal, Riverdeep and the remaining part of The Learning Company, which will return to its former name, Broderbund, have agreed to a reciprocal distribution partnership whereby Broderbund distributes all Riverdeep products including TLC titles to the retail market.
Riverdeep will, in turn, distribute all Broderbund products directly to schools in North America. Broderbund incorporates the Productivity and E-Commerce division of TLC which is remaining with Gores.
The Learning Company was ranked first in installed base in both instructional software and comprehensive courseware categories in a survey conducted by Quality Education Data, a research and database company, Riverdeep said.
Gores Technology Group is a privately held international acquisition and management firm that aggressively acquires promising high-technology organisations and manages them for growth and profitability.
