Flat World Knowledge, a US-based publisher of free and open college textbooks, has raised an undisclosed amount of strategic funding from book publisher Random House, three months after another subsidiary of Germany-based media group Bertelsmann.
In January, Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (BDMI), the corporate venturing unit of Bertelsmann, backed as a new investor the $15m series B round for Flat World Knowledge.
Random House’s, the world’s largest English-language trade book publisher, investment in Flat World Knowledge, whose terms are undisclosed, is a separate, additional investment from the BDMI commitment.
Markus Dohle, executive chairman of Random House, said: "Flat World Knowledge is a transformative company in higher-education publishing whose forward-thinking digital initiatives and implementation complement ours."
Jeff Shelstad, Flat World Knowledge chief executive and co-founder, said: "This investment by Random House, the digital and print publisher of many of the world’s great authors and their books, sends a strong message to our customers about the quality of our authors’ work, and the long-term viability of our business model."
Students are expected to spend an average of $1,137 in 2010-11 for textbooks and supplies, according to The College Board, and more than 1,600 professors at over 900 colleges and universities have adopted Flat World books.
Alongside Bertelsmann as investors are venture capital firms Bessemer Venture Partners, Valhalla Partners, GSA Venture Partners (formerly Greenhill SAVP) and High Peaks Venture Partners and angel investors in the B round consortium.
In March 2009, Flat World raised $8m in its series A round from Valhalla, Greenhill SAVP, and High Peaks and angels.