Macmillan Digital Education Acquires Maths Doctor to Enter UK E-tutoring Market

LONDON, October 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Macmillan Digital Education has made its first significant play for e-tutoring in the UK with the acquisition of Maths Doctor - a British award-winning e-learning business that is run by qualified teachers. The deal bolsters Macmillan Digital Education's portfolio of technology-driven educational service providers, serving parents, students and educators.

Maths Doctor provides live one-to-one home tutoring via the internet, plus worksheets and tutoring videos via its newly launched mobile phone app.  Company founder, Simon Walsh will remain as Managing Director of Maths Doctor to scale the business.  "I am very pleased to become part of the team at Digital Education for Macmillan and look forward to continuing to run the company as Managing Director.  It is a pleasure to be joining a team who share my long-term vision and belief in the future of digital education."

Walsh will report to Macmillan Digital Education's Managing Director, Matthias Ick. "Maths Doctor is a highly complementary product that fits perfectly with our tutoring portfolio, including Tutoria and HeyTutor. Digital Education can provide the capital, resources and network to build on the great work already done by Simon to maximize student learning and engagement."

Macmillan Digital Education invests into and builds consumer-focused educational services.  It is the corporate venture capital arm of Macmillan Publishing Ltd, one of the leading global educational publishers. Together, Maths Doctor and Macmillan Digital Education share the aim of raising educational standards through a hybrid of online and offline learning channels.  

Maths Doctor is based at Sussex University Innovation Centre and has a network of tutors across the UK who have delivered over 25,000 live online lessons. Together with Macmillan Digital Education it has just started a research project in partnership with all secondary schools in Brighton and Hove, Sussex. This scheme involves working with local school teachers to deliver revision lessons and live interactive teaching through a pupil's mobile phone.

About Maths Doctor: Based in Brighton, Sussex, Maths Doctor was founded by Simon Walsh, a highly experienced and qualified mathematics teacher who has worked for both state and independent schools. Mr Walsh has a strong reputation for his innovative approach to teaching and an ability to relate well to young people and has been involved for many years in providing both traditional and alternative forms of education. http://www.MathsDoctor.tv 

About Digital Education: Launched in January 2012 by one of the world's leading educational publishers, Macmillan Digital Education captures opportunities in the consumer online education markets. A corporate venture capital investor and incubator, which is technology and service driven to make learning more effective and fun whilst embracing an user centric business understanding. http://www.digital-education.com        

About Macmillan Publishers Ltd: Macmillan Publishers Ltd. is one of the largest and best known international publishing groups in the world with staff operating in over 80 countries. It is a part of the privately owned media group, Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck GmbH. Macmillan provides a wide range of high-quality information through its scholarly, educational, fiction and non-fiction publishing activities. Products include journals in science, medicine and the social sciences; academic monographs; educational course materials, textbooks and online resources; as well as serious non-fiction and literary fiction. For more information, please visit http://www.macmillan.com/

Photography/logos available on request.

SOURCE Macmillan Digital Education