Rosetta Stone buys language website Livemocha
Language software provider Rosetta Stone buys language website Livemocha for $8.5 million
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) -- Rosetta Stone has acquired Livemocha, an online language-learning company, for $8.5 million as it seeks to grow its Web technology and overseas users.
Rosetta Stone Inc., which sells its language software online and in stores, cited Livemocha's more than 16 million users in 195 countries. It has a strong presence in China, Russia and South America.
The Arlington, Va., company said that Livemocha's language services were cheaper and sometimes free. Rosetta Stone's software can cost hundreds of dollars.
The deal could also speed up Rosetta's plans for more cloud learning technology. Cloud computing, a growing technology trend, involves subscriptions to software that can be accessed on any Internet-connected device rather than installed on a computer.
Livemocha will remain in Seattle.
Shares of Arlington, Va.-based Rosetta Stone jumped 76 cents, or 5.1 percent, to $15.82 in afternoon trading, touching their highest point since June 2011.
