TMCnet News
TutorVista Secures $2 Million from Sequoia Capital IndiaSAN FRANCISCO, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- June 12, 2006 -- TutorVista (www.TutorVista.com), a leading online tutoring and test preparation company, today announced it has secured $2 million in series A round funding. The round was led by Sequoia Capital India and includes prior angel investors. The funding will help TutorVista expand operations in the United States and bring affordable high-quality education to more students globally. "We are excited to partner with the founders and management team of TutorVista to create a global market leader in online education services," said K.P. Balaraj, Sequoia Capital General Partner. "The founders have an ambitious vision of making assisted learning and test preparation services significantly more affordable by leveraging the internet as a distribution and learning medium. As the leading investor in internet and mobile consumer services companies in India, we look forward to working closely with Ganesh and his team to build a great franchise in education services." Krishnan Ganesh, TutorVista CEO, said, "We have seen a tremendous response to our online tutoring and test prep packages. This funding will allow us to expand our operations to support the growing demand for online tutoring and test preparation. In a short time, TutorVista has shown itself to be innovative in pricing and product offerings in the tutoring and test preparation space. This new round of funding is a testament to our leadership in this space." "TutorVista is the answer to some of the most pressing problems in the education sector in this country," said Patricia Perry, TutorVista's Vice President of Sales. "Declining test scores, a shortage of teachers, overcrowded classrooms and lack of individual attention to students has created a crisis situation. One-on-one instruction customized for each student is needed, and TutorVista offers this at a flat monthly fee. Parents and schools across the country have responded enthusiastically to our educational offerings." Launched in 2005, TutorVista is now available in the United States and United Kingdom. TutorVista offers online tutoring that uses voice and whiteboard to bridge the distance between student and tutor. Since the service is open 24/7 and is offered online, students can get tutoring any time and from any location with internet access, freeing parents from the need to drive their children to tutoring centers. TutorVista was the first to launch a flat price tutoring plan. While traditional tutoring costs $40-$60 per hour, TutorVista charges only $99.99 per month for unlimited online tutoring in all subjects. TutorVista covers all subjects for K-12 and college students. TutorVista test preparation packages for SAT, ACT and other exams are based on one-on-one tutoring and include full-length practice tests. About Sequoia Capital Since 1972, Sequoia Capital has provided startup venture capital for very smart people who want to turn ideas into companies. As the "Entrepreneurs Behind the Entrepreneurs," Sequoia Capital's Partners have worked with innovators such as Sandy Lerner and Len Bozack of Cisco Systems, Jerry Yang and David Filo of Yahoo!, Gaurav Garg of Redback Networks, Larry Page and Sergey Brin of Google, Dan Warmenhoven of Network Appliance, T.J. Rodgers of Cypress Semiconductor, Lou Tomasetta of Vitesse Semiconductor, Steve Jobs of Apple Computer and Larry Ellison of Oracle. The companies organized by Sequoia Capital now account for about 10% of the value of NASDAQ. To learn more about Sequoia Capital visit www.sequoiacap.com. About TutorVista TutorVista is an online tutoring company that provides affordable tutoring and test preparation in the United States and United Kingdom. TutorVista uses technology to bring high-quality tutoring to the student's home and uses global education resources to makes tutoring affordable and convenient. TutorVista is the perfect solution to address problems like declining test scores, a shortage of teachers and lack of affordable supplementary education and test preparation. To learn more about TutorVista visit www.TutorVista.com. |
