 | |
| Formerly | Lynda.com (1995-2017) |
|---|---|
| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | E-learning |
| Founded | 1995; 30 years ago (1995) |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters | |
| Services | |
| Parent | LinkedIn (2015-present) |
| Website | www |
| Footnotes / references [1] | |
LinkedIn Learning is an American globalmassive open online course provider. It provides video courses taught by industry experts in software, creative, and business skills. It is a subsidiary ofLinkedIn. All the courses on LinkedIn fall into four categories: Business, Creative, Technology, and Certifications.
It was founded in 1995 byLynda Weinman asLynda.com before being acquired by LinkedIn in 2015 and becoming LinkedIn Learning.[2]Microsoft acquired LinkedIn in December 2016.[3]
LinkedIn Learning was founded as Lynda.com in 1995 inOjai,California, as online support for the books and classes ofLynda Weinman, a special effects animator and multimedia professor who founded a digital arts school with her husband, artist Bruce Heavin.[4]
In 2002, the company began offering courses online.[5] By 2004, there were 100 courses, and in 2008, the company began producing and publishing documentaries on creative leaders, artists, and entrepreneurs.[6]
In 2013, Lynda.com received its first outside investment, raising $103 million (~$136 million in 2024) in growthequity fromAccel Partners and Spectrum Equity, with additional contributions fromMeritech Capital Partners.[7] On January 14, 2015, Lynda.com announced it had raised $186 million (~$240 million in 2024) in financing, led by investment groupTPG Capital.[8]
On April 9, 2015,LinkedIn announced its intention to buy Lynda.com in a deal valued at $1.5 billion, which officially closed on May 14, 2015.[9]
In 2016, Lynda.com began to broadcast courses on theirApple TV application.[10]
On June 13, 2016,Microsoft announced that it would acquire Lynda.com's parent company LinkedIn for $26.2 billion (~$33.5 billion in 2024). The acquisition was completed on December 8, 2016.[11][12][13]
In October 2017, Lynda.com was merged and renamedLinkedIn Learning.[14] In 2019, the site announced that users accessing LinkedIn Learning through theirpublic library would be required to create a LinkedIn profile in order to use the service; the decision faced criticism fromlibrarians and theAmerican Library Association.[15][16][17] As of March 2021, libraries started migrating to LinkedIn Learning without requiring patrons to create a LinkedIn profile.[18]
On June 2, 2021, the lynda.com site was shut down and is now permanently redirected to LinkedIn Learning.[19]
In February 2013, Lynda.com acquired video2brain, anAustrian-based provider of online classes in web design and programming, available in German, French, Spanish, and English.[20]
On April 7, 2014, Lynda.com purchased Canadian start-up Compilr, provider of an online editor and sandbox.[21]
Microsoft Corp. and LinkedIn Corporation on Monday announced they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Microsoft willacquire LinkedIn for $16 pershare in an all-cashtransaction valued at $26.2 billion, inclusive of LinkedIn's net cash.
