Desire2Learn’s Most Recent Acquisition, Wiggio, Makes Working in Groups Easy for Students Both Inside and Outside of the Classroom

Desire2Learn announces integration of Wiggio, the company’s most recent acquisition, into Desire2Learn Learning Suite.

FUSION 2013, Boston, Mass., July 15, 2013

Desire2Learn Incorporated (“Desire2Learn”), a leading provider of innovative learning solutions, today announced it has integrated Wiggio, the company’s most recent acquisition, into Desire2Learn Learning Suite. To help make working in groups simple, Wiggio’s enterprise-class communications tools empower students to manage group messaging, file sharing, scheduling and task management much more easily. Desire2Learn, which acquired the Boston-based company in March 2013, will begin offering the integrated solution for free this Fall to its global customers. Wiggio’s employees are now part of Desire2Learn’s new Boston office, which serves as its first US hub.

“Wiggio was initially created to address my own collaboration needs as a student and the technology is now used by more than a million students, validating the need for this type of solution,” said Dana Lampert, former Wiggio CEO and now Director of Engineering at Desire2Learn. “I’m delighted that we’re helping the learning community work more efficiently and excited to have an even bigger impact now that we’re a part of the Desire2Learn family, which is expanding its global footprint at such a rapid rate.”

Wiggio equips students with enterprise-grade collaboration tools for working in groups, both inside and outside of the classroom, by providing a central place for students to connect with their study groups, project teams, clubs, sports teams or extracurricular organizations.

“Most learners are involved in at least five groups — plus social organizations — and organizing their contacts and collaborative efforts can be daunting. Wiggio solves that problem by providing simple tools that can access all of the various groups and individual works in one consolidated location,” said Jeff McDowell, Vice President, Global Marketing, Desire2Learn.

More than 1.5 million students at more than 2,000 colleges and universities worldwide use Wiggio today. Those users continue to be supported by Desire2Learn. Instructors, administrators and learners can use Wiggio to collaborate through a single solution, removing the hassle of having to use multiple tools to get projects done. Previously, students were forced to use separate tools to coordinate and accomplish group activities: list-servs for email, DropBox, Google Docs and FTPs for central file storage, and multiple communications tools to simply talk and converse. This lack of standardization inhibited group participation and prevented true collaboration. Wiggio streamlines and simplifies group work by providing a central hub for all collaboration. Integration with Desire2Learn Learning Environment enables students to:

• Send mass messages to all group members via email, text, voice, and video note;
• Schedule events on a shared group calendar;
• Upload and edit files;
• Create polls, host virtual meetings via conference call and run video chats, screen sharing or group chat rooms;
• Manage group projects with “to-do” lists.

Wiggio will also be available as a standalone offering. For more information about Wiggio, please visit: www.desire2learn.com/wiggio.

About Desire2Learn

Desire2Learn is helping to transform the way the world learns. Providing the next generation learning environment and solutions to engage and inspire lifelong learners, Desire2Learn helps clients break down barriers to access the highest quality learning experiences, and is recognized for its leadership in accessibility. Desire2Learn is a global leader in cloud-based (SaaS) learning solutions and provides an open and extensible platform to over 750 clients and over 10 million learners in higher education, K-12, healthcare, government and the corporate sector, including the Fortune 1000. Desire2Learn has personnel in the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, Brazil and Singapore. For more information or to contact us, visit: http://www.Desire2Learn.com.