Blackboard Inc. and Edline will join together to better serve teachers and learners, the companies announced.
The companies currently serve thousands of K-12 school districts and tens of thousands of schools with a range of complementary solutions for online and mobile learning, professional development and community engagement. Edline and Blackboard are both owned by Providence Equity Partners, which announced the completion of its acquisition of Blackboard yesterday.
Both companies provide learning management and mass notification solutions to the K-12 market, while Edline also offers a "learning community management system" (LCMS) that integrates learning management and notification capabilities within a school or district Web site. Blackboard also offers robust Web conferencing and collaboration and mobile education solutions to K-12 clients.
Working together, the companies will offer a more diverse and complete set of options that gives clients greater choice and flexibility in choosing products and services that best support their work.
The companies will work together to invest in their overall product set for K-12 schools and districts, including the Edline LCMS, which will remain an independent offering. In carrying out its strategic plan, Edline will operate as a division within Blackboard.
