Hyderabad-based Edutor aims to capture a big slice of the edtech market pie with its learning solutions

In its race to be counted as a developed nation, it is important for India to educate its population and make them contributing citizens. India has the advantage of youth on its side with more than 50% of the population below 25 years of age, but this can become a potent force only if shaped properly. The increasing penetration of internet and mobile devices in this demographic, and the growth of online education market in India is indubitable too.

The education market in India, presently worth around Rs 5.9 trillion (US$ 92.98 billion), is poised for major growth. According to industry estimates, by 2020, India will have the world’s largest tertiary-age population and second largest graduate talent pipeline. The number of entrepreneurs venturing into the education space has increased but the innovation and startup success in the online education sector has not seen a comparable growth yet. Although VC activity has been picking up in the space lately, as Top VC firms are showing interest in Edtech startups and atleast 5 startups have raised close to $40 million in funding since April.

Mobile media is not just an informal technology for non-formal learning, but it is also being integrated into formal educational institutions. Mobiles are being used in various configurations: teacher-student interaction, student-student collaboration, capacity building for teachers, academic publisher platforms, and so on. Edutor Technologies, an e-learning platform, provides interactive learning solutions for K12 schools, higher education institutions and for test preparations.

Edutor works with all the key stakeholders in the education system -- students, parents and the education institutions. Edutor was launched in 2009 by Ram Gollamudi, Prasanna Boni & Ramesh Karra. They started by introducing tablets and tablet-based learning.

Ignitor platform for next gen textbook

Edutor has a flagship product called Ignitor, which provides interactive learning solutions. Through Ignitor, Edutor offers a custom designed solution called Edutor Student Tab which is an Android tablet pre-loaded with its learning platform Ignitor. Ignitor can also be deployed on various makes of tablets to deliver enhanced learning experience enriched with well-researched content. Ignitor helps the tutor to engage with students and also empowers them to make the learning experience go beyond rigid boundaries of the past. The main components of Ignitor are as follows:

• Mobile Learning Environment
• Course Delivery Engine
• Content Security
• Mobile Device Management

Students can access the content offline anytime, anywhere and the content delivery platform provides content from top publishers like Pearson, Orient Blackswan and Cambridge University Press. Ignitor works with the schools for solution integration and students are instructed to ‘Bring Your Own Device’ (BYOD). The Ignitor platform and courseware are installed on the student devices which are then used in the classroom and at home. More than 40,000 students are using Ignitor now.

Test preparation and higher education

Edutor also works with test preparation institutes to solve the challenges that are faced by these institutes due to changing exam patterns, evolving assessment paradigms and the sheer growth in the number of students appearing for these competitive exams. Edutor also provides solution for distance-based learning with a video-based course delivery network through Ignitor. Ignitor offline-online Assessment Engine offers end-to-end automation of assessment process for institutes. Edutor also provides solutions for higher education institutions like Learning Management Systems, Communication & Collaboration and Assessments – all integrated around Digital Book & Content.

In March 2012, Edutor Technologies had raised INR 2 crore from Hyderabad Angels, led by serial entrepreneur Sashi Reddi. Edutor has 40,000 students as paying customers. Edutor has expanded its geographical footprint and has been offering its products to the US and Europe market in the last two years and have a good amount of traction.

Though the test preparation market is growing at a rapid pace with multiple players like 100marks, MeraTestBazaar, Testbook, Embibe and Toppr trying to make a mark, the sector has only seen a few exits in the recent past. One of the latest ones was the acquisition of EasyPrep by Toppr for an undisclosed amount.

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