Forecast for Investors

The economic forecast for the Educational App Market is extremely positive with near-to-long term growth expected. According to Ambient Insight, mobile learning products and services had revenues of $8.4 billion in 2014. In a research report prepared by Infiniti Research Limited, the Educational App Market is expected to grow at a rate of 34.72% CAGR (compound annual growth rate) to 2019, while gamification in learning, as delivered through education apps, is expected to grow at a staggering rate of 64.43% CAGR from $1.5 billion in 2012 to $2.3 billion in 2017. Ambient Insight is predicting Global revenues from mobile learning will reach $14.5 Billion by 2019. Broken down by region, mobile learning app revenues are projected to reach by 2019:

  • $2.1 billion in the US
  • $1.06 billion in Brazil
  • $2.3 billion in China
  • $7.7 billion in Asia

These forecasts are driven by several trends including:

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  • Initiatives to digitize content in K-12 education
  • The adoption and proliferation of tablets in K-12 schools
  • Massive consumer demand for mobile learning apps and content
  • High demand for early learning apps for pre-school children
  • High demand for language learning apps
  • High demand for brain training apps
  • Rapid innovation in augmented and virtual reality learning apps

 

It is the massive demand by North American consumers for mobile learning apps and content that shows great promise with revenues nearly doubling in the five-year period from 2013 ($227.9 million) to 2018 ($410.27 million). According to Tyson Greer of Ambient Insight in his 2013 report on the 2013-2018 North America Mobile Edugame Market, Math and language learning apps for young children and brain training apps for an aging population are by far the most popular education apps. It is no surprise that Ambient Insight considers consumers to be the top buyers worldwide of mobile learning apps and content.

While the forecast for the Educational App Market is set for explosive growth, there are a few things that may inhibit this growth and therefore investment opportunities:

  • Many one-or-two-person startups continue to flood the market
  • With so many apps available, discoverability proves a constant challenge–especially for small startups
  • The North American academic market is highly fragmented with each school and/or district having its own purchasing process
  • Many schools ban personal mobile devices from the classroom as they are seen to be a distraction to learning
  • Access to enough devices for students can often be a challenge in many schools
  • Support for teachers who have little experience or time is low to non-existent
  • Educational apps are not always seen as being truly educational

Despite these drawbacks, the forecast for the investment Educational App Market remains optimistic.

Next: Activity 3