Microsoft has taken another step in bolstering its education content with the acquisition of TakeLessons, a program to connect students with instructors by offering private and group lessons (via TechCrunch). The San Diego based company, started in 2006 by offering music lessons online, has branched out to offer lessons for everything from piano, guitar, and more music lessons, to languages including American Sign Language (ASL), math, SAT, Chemistry, and even computer skills, and crafts and hobbies.
There’s no word on terms of the acquisition, but for now it looks like TakeLessons will continue much as it has previously. In a FAQ on the acquisition, TakeLessons says that the activities of choosing instructors and taking lessons should stay relatively the same, but that they “hope to make these experiences even better.” They may add a “Powered By Microsoft” tagline, but have no current plans to change the name, and do plan on benefits from teaming up with Microsoft:
Q: How will TakeLessons teaming up with Microsoft help me?
A: We expect that this change will provide greater resources for TakeLessons to build better products, attract more high quality teachers, and offer a wider selection of subjects.
Q: Will my instructor and pricing stay the same?
A: We expect that the large majority of all instructors will remain on the platform. Instructors will retain the full control they have today to set the hourly pricing for their services. We look forward to providing even more pricing options to students and instructors in the future.
Microsoft has continued to compete with Google and Chromebooks in schools, gearing Teams for Education, leaning on the Minecraft acquisition with Minecraft for Education, and building out OneNote Education. The TakeLessons acquisition is another step in that direction.
