LinkedIn has announced that they will be purchasing the online learning platform Lynda.com. Lynda.com has been around since 1995 and offers videos and tutorials on everything from HTML to management and graphic design.
LinkedIn will pay 52% of the $1.5 billion in cash with the rest being paid in stock. There has been no official closing date released for the sale, but analysts expect the sale to be finalized by the end of the second quarter. According to a press release, the majority of Lynda.com employees will remain employees after the acquisition.
Lynda owns several products beyond the company’s individual subscriber platform. The company offers their training in several languages and has lyndaEnterprise, which caters to government and corporate institutes. There are also several other platforms that LinkedIn will acquire, including: lyndaPro, lyndaLibrary, lyndaKiosk and lyndaCampus, which offers high-quality courses in a massive library.
The companies will work closely together to determine what Lynda means for the LinkedIn brand. The main learning center will remain open for business, but future plans for the education resources have yet to be released. Many expect that the platform will be integrated into LinkedIn to connect users with adequate skills and find employment through the social media site.
