News Corp. agrees to buy Wireless Generation
News Corp. has agreed to acquire Wireless Generation Inc., an education technology company in a deal that signals the media giant’s move into the education market.
The Rupert Murdoch-controlled media giant said it would pay $360 million in cash for a 90% stake in the privately held company that makes software to help teachers evaluate students and tailor individualized instruction. Wireless Generation’s technology already is being used by more than 200,000 teachers across the country, News Corp. said.
The investment comes on the heels of News Corp.’s high-profile hiring this month of Joel Klein, the former New York school-system chancellor, to advise Murdoch, News Corp.’s chairman and chief executive, on emerging opportunities in the educational marketplace. In a statement, Murdoch outlined what he saw as the business opportunity in elementary and secondary education.
“When it comes to K through 12 education, we see a $500-billion sector in the U.S. alone that is waiting desperately to be transformed by big breakthroughs that extend the reach of great teaching,” Murdoch said in a statement. “Wireless Generation is at the forefront of individualized, technology-based learning.”
New York’s Department of Education uses Wireless Generation’s technologies as part of a Klein-led education reform initiative that gave principals in the city’s schools greater autonomy — but required heightened accountability for student performance. Among other things, the technology enabled parents to go online to check a child’s attendance records and test results.
As part of the acquisition, Wireless Generation would become a subsidiary of News Corp. The Brooklyn-based firm will be managed by Larry Berger, its founder and chief executive; Josh Reibel, president and chief operating officer; and Laurence Holt, chief product officer. They will collectively retain a 10% interest in the company.
