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Mimio, Headsprout Sold to Private Equity Firm

Two education technology developers — Mimio and Headsprout — have been sold off by their parent company, Newell Rubbermaid, to Skyview Capital, a private equity firm in Los Angeles. Rubbermaid had been looking to sell off its specialty businesses since May.

Mimio is a maker of a variety of smart classroom technologies, including interactive displays and projectors, interactive whiteboards, document cameras, classroom clickers, instructional software, and mobile technologies designed for the classroom. Specific products include MimioBoard, MimioTeach, MimioProjector, MimioStudio, MimioMobile, MimioView, and others.

Headsprout, meanwhile, is an e-learning company that Rubbermaid purchased just two years ago and subsequently merged into Mimio. Its products include reading comprehension and early learning software, currently known as MimioReading and MimioSprout.

Skyview Capital did not indicate any particular plans for Mimio and Headsprout, but Skyview Chairman Alex Soltani said in a prepared statement, "We are very excited about adding Mimio to the Skyview portfolio. We see tremendous potential in both the education technology and curriculum segments. Mimio has cutting-edge technologies to enhance the learning experience for students around the world."

Skyview Capital bills itself as a firm that "strive[s] to create long-term sustainable value within the enterprises we acquire, by providing them the highest level of financial resources and operational acumen necessary to realize and achieve their full business potential."

In a prepared statement, Mimio General Manager Manny Perez added: "Skyview has a deep understanding of and experience in the technology industry and sees the value Mimio has to offer. The firm has a proven track record of helping companies increase in value, and we are confident that the Mimio business will benefit from this expertise as we continue to fulfill our mission of offering innovative and relevant instructional technologies."

Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


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