News Corp will acquire 90pc of a US education technology company, Wireless Generation, for $360m.
Wireless Generation employs 400 staff. They provide mobile assessment software in order to test students and allow teachers to adjust lesson plans accordingly. It is used by 200,000 educators and on 3 million students.
Rupert Murdoch, CEO of News Corp, said in a statement that the US schools market is a $500bn sector “waiting desperately to be transformed by big breakthroughs that extend the reach of great teaching.”
Founder and CEO of Wireless Generation, Larry Berger, will hold the remaining 10pc of the company.
According to the Financial Times, the move was made only days after the chief of New York’s schools announced he would join News Corp to scout for deals for education.
News Corp owns numerous media products, including BSkyB, Fox, The Times and MySpace. They’ve recently teamed up with Apple to provide a subscription-based digital newspaper for iPads called The Daily.
