Kaplan University & Colleges will be owned by Amazon?

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by TEKMAN, Aug 6, 2013.

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  1. TEKMAN

    TEKMAN Semper Fi!

    TEKMAN, Aug 6, 2013
    #1
  2. airtorn

    airtorn Moderator

    Jeff Bezos, not Amazon, is purchasing the publishing business. Kaplan is not included in the deal.
     
    airtorn, Aug 6, 2013
    #2
  3. siersema

    siersema Active Member

    I came here to say what airtorn already mentioned.. so instead I'll leave you with a related article Will Kaplan survive without The Washington Post? - Libby A. Nelson - POLITICO.com
     
    siersema, Aug 6, 2013
    #3
  4. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    To me the real question is what will happen to things like Slate, Foreign Policy, and especially TheRoot, none of which are part of the sale and all of which seem like they'd be somewhat orphaned without the big newspaper sending them web traffic.
     
    SteveFoerster, Aug 6, 2013
    #4
  5. Chip

    Chip Administrator

    I thought I'd read that Bezos is buying *only* the Washington Post, and not the other assets associated with it, but I only glanced at the article, so I may be completely off base.
     
    Chip, Aug 6, 2013
    #5
  6. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    SteveFoerster, Aug 6, 2013
    #6
  7. Petedude

    Petedude New Member

    The implications for Kaplan are interesting, but initially not as big as they might appear on the surface. So far, the parent company is renaming itself and continuing on with everything that Bezos didn't buy. My thought at the moment is that if the corporate parent has kept Kaplan running this long, they should manage to stay the course. Worst case, they sell Kaplan (probably quite easily) to another one of the for-profit education giants. Doing so would be fraught with risk though, as Kaplan has managed to keep going largely based on its unique corporate identity/legacy, much of which it would lose were it consumed by one of the for-profit mammoths. I also expect students would leave Kaplan in droves if it's bought by one of the for-profit education megacompanies.
     
    Petedude, Aug 6, 2013
    #7
  8. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    I don't think this sale affects Kaplan at all. Despite the university's troubles it's been the parent company's main revenue generator for some time so I don't foresee them unloading it. And even if they do I doubt most of their students would care one way or the other.
     
    SteveFoerster, Aug 6, 2013
    #8
  9. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    This has been true historically. However, Kaplan (like many other companies) has been severely affected by the recent downturn in the for-profit education sector; it was unprofitable in 2012, and may still be losing money. The 2012 Washington Post Company annual report put it like this:

    (KHE = Kaplan Higher Education; KTP = Kaplan Test Preparation)

    So the Kaplan part of the company made $96.3 million in 2011 -- but it lost $105.4 million in 2012.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 6, 2013
    CalDog, Aug 6, 2013
    #9
  10. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    Agreed, the Washington Post has been bankrolled by Kaplan for quite some time now. If anything, it will remove a huge monkey off of Kaplan's back.
     
    friendorfoe, Aug 7, 2013
    #10

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