Blockchain games company Animoca Brands has acquired Israeli EdTech leader TinyTap in a $39 million deal.
The Hong Kong company, which advances digital property rights for gaming and the metaverse, now owns 84% of TinyTap and says it is entering the EdTech sector to ‘provide an alternative global system owned by educators’.
TinyTap is a user-generated content educational technology company that provides a no-code platform enabling educators to create and distribute interactive educational content while earning a usage-based revenue share.
Animoca Brands will leverage the acquisition of TinyTap to establish a new business segment for blockchain-based UGC educational content that will allow educators worldwide to generate their own equity.
“Educators number among the most prolific creators and traders of content,” said Yat Siu, co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands. “Despite the fact that teaching is among the most important professions, educators generally struggle with funding and resources.
“Our goal is to mitigate some of the challenges faced by teachers everywhere. With our acquisition of TinyTap – a strong and proven leader in the field of UGC education – we will leverage blockchain to make new opportunities available to educators worldwide, allowing them to generate equity from their creations while offering parents enhanced learning opportunities for their kids.”
TinyTap was founded in 2012 and currently employs 30 staff.
More than 8.2 million families registered on TinyTap are able to learn from more than 200,000 interactive lessons and educational games created by publishers such as Oxford University Press, The Learning Company, and Sesame Street, in addition to more than 100,000 other publishers and independent contributors on the platform.
TinyTap content is currently aimed primarily at young learners, but the company is working on expanding its offering to learners of all ages.
Yogev Shelly, CEO of TinyTap, said: “Since inception, TinyTap has worked to free educators from the limitations of traditional education systems and inadequate budgets.
“We empower educators to create engaging learning activities that can reach millions of kids directly and that enable them to earn based on the success of their creations.
“By becoming a part of Animoca Brands, we will leverage blockchain to advance this vision and build a new education system that is independent of schools and governments, and that is owned and led by educators themselves.”