IAC today announced that it has acquired online tutoring firm Tutor.com, which boasts a network of over 2,500 screened tutors who can do one-to-one teaching sessions with students on-demand.
IAC did not disclose how much it paid for the New York company, which was founded by CEO George Cigale in 1998, but said it was a ‘small’ deal with a ‘compelling valuation’ for Tutor.com.
Either way, Cigale will stay on as CEO and continue to run the business from Tutor.com’s offices in NYC.
According to an NYT source, IAC coughed up just under $40 million for the company.
Greg Blatt, CEO of IAC, says the Internet media holding acquired Tutor.com after they did most of the legwork to get an online tutoring business off the ground:
“Tutor.com has done the hard part, having built over many years an incredible nationwide network of high quality tutors ready to help students improve their learning. We think it’s ripe for us to accelerate usage by bringing to bear our consumer Internet expertise in areas like product, marketing and distribution.
It’s not often we find a company with such untapped potential that our particular skill set can help unlock, in an area that truly helps people improve their lives, all at a compelling valuation. Although it’s small, we’re excited about the acquisition.”
Historically focused on core K-12 subjects, Tutor.com has more recently expanded into AP courses, test prep, college-level curriculum, and real-time writing help. The company claims ‘millions of students’ have benefited from its personalized learning programs.
Said programs are offered by direct consumer subscription and through partnerships with public and academic libraries, school districts, the U.S. military, and colleges.
Image credit: Thinkstock
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