Web Filters & Monitors

Online Safety Provider Family Zone Announces Agreement to Acquire Qustodio

• By Kristal Kuykendall
• 05/03/22

Australia-based online monitoring provider Family Zone today announced it will acquire competitor Qustodio and its subsidiaries in a deal valued at $52 million, according to a news release.

In announcing the agreement, Qustodio and Family Zone noted that the deal is subject to approval from Spanish regulators and Family Zone shareholders.

Family Zone cited its patented cyber-safety ecosystem in noting the company’s rapid growth in the emerging cyber safety industry. Family Zone's platform goes beyond parental controls over children’s online activities and simplifies collaboration between schools, parents, and cyber-safety educators as it monitors for signs of danger or harmful behavior, the company said.

Qustodio, founded in 2012, operates its cross-platform monitoring solution in eight languages with over 4 million users in more than 180 countries, helping “manage and balance screen time, block harmful content, and promote healthier online activity,” according to the news release.

The merger of the two companies will “bring accelerated growth through scale and product expansion,” Family Zone officials said. Family Zone is parent company to Linewize, a cyber-safety solution for K–12 schools including web filters, activity and screen monitoring, and more. In the past year, Family Zone has acquired firewall and web filter provider Cipafilter; acquired Smoothwall, a youth cyber-safety software provider based in the United Kingdom; and acquired Virginia-based classroom activity monitor and learning analytics provider NetRef.

Learn more at FamilyZone.com and Qustodio.com.