Echo360 Active Learning Selected to Prepare Students for Estonia's Technology Economy

DULLES, VA--(Marketwired - Nov 26, 2013) - Echo360, the global leader in active and distance learning solutions, today announced a multi-year commitment encompassing fourteen universities throughout Estonia. The deployment of lecture capture technology impacts more than 10,000 students across the various institutions providing them with blended learning instruction accessible at their convenience. The commitment marks Europe's first countrywide active learning deployment and furthers Echo360's strong European market share.

Estonia is a tech-friendly nation of 1.3 million people. It is known for tech startups and universal Internet access as a human right. The country's success is rooted in technology education and 100 percent of its schools are online. The Information Technology Foundation for Education (ITFE) chose Echo360 to continue this tradition by maximizing instruction and sharing content across the universities. ITFE aims to create highly skilled information technology workers able to support Estonia's booming knowledge-based economy. Project funding came from the European Regional Development Fund -- a body dedicated to the creation of sustainable jobs and economic growth across the European Union.

Using Echo360, universities deliver flexible and interactive instruction to their students, most of whom hold part-time employment. Students will be able to balance work and course schedules while preparing for lifelong careers with the ability to access recorded lectures, labs, instructional videos and other course materials at their own pace.

Echo360 was selected for its ease of use, automated capture and publishing capabilities and seamless integration with Moodle. With limited trained technologists working within the university system, the platform minimizes the need for additional manpower to support the technology.

"We appreciate the value of Echo360 in the fact that it is a complete system," said Ene Koitla, Head at Innovation Centre at Information Technology Foundation for Education. "The platform is easy to use and support which solves one of our key challenges in that it does not require a large support staff to manage the technology. Meanwhile, blended learning enables our students to continue working and learning without losing the valuable personal connection of the instructor."

ITFE uses Echo360 live webcasting to deliver their technology conference to remote participants across the country. They plan to utilize live webcasting on a regular basis to broadcast lectures, meetings and labs and connect distance learners beginning next fall. Content captured through Echo360 will also be used for development of future e-learning courses, as most instructors have minimal time to devote to instructional design.

"Echo360 is thrilled to secure Europe's first ever countrywide agreement within Estonia," said Fred Singer, CEO of Echo360. "Our collaborative platform allows instructors across the participating universities to teach in the manner to which they are accustomed, while helping to prepare a new generation of highly skilled workers in Estonia through active learning."

ITFE hosts central services for all of the universities, making the shared infrastructure more economical and convenient to manage. This structure will also make it easier for the institutions to share learning content, which must be publicly open and available through the funded initiative. The fourteen participating Estonian universities include:

• Estonian Information Technology College
• Estonian Aviation Academy
• Estonian National Defence College
• Lääne-Viru College
• Estonian Academy of Security Sciences
• Tallinn Polytechnic School
• TTK University of Applied Sciences
• Tallinn University of Technology
• Tallinn Health Care College
• Tallinn University
• Tartu Health Care College
• University of Tartu
• University of Tartu Narva College
• University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy

Echo360
More than two million students in 7,000 classrooms at 650 institutions across 30 countries rely on Echo360 technology to enhance their educational experience. Echo360 digitally records and shares instructional content live and on demand, allowing institutions to reach more students while lowering costs. Through Echo360, students engage with their peers through collaborative tools and review information from instructors online, at their convenience and across various devices. The company has been recognized with a Product Line Strategy of the Year Award from Frost & Sullivan, is CSIA-certified for outstanding customer service, and was named a Visionary Vendor in Educational Technology by IT research firm Basex. Echo360 is backed by Revolution Growth led by Steve Case, Ted Leonsis and Donn Davis.