Chilean
Company Penetrates U.S. Education Market
Santiago,
Chile – 15 Set 2006
Chile
exporting classroom aids to the U.S.? After all the criticism of
the country’s educational standards, that seems an unlikely
proposition but it is precisely what a Santiago-based start-up is
doing, and with considerable success.
In
2001, Gilbert Leiva, a Peruvian entrepreneur, had just completed
an International Studies program at the Adolfo Ibáñez
University in Viña del Mar when he happened to attend a talk
by President Ricardo Lagos. It was partly what he heard there that
inspired him to start a company that, today, is doing good business
supplying educational materials to U.S. schools.
Chile’s
then president talked about the opportunities that would be opened
up by the country’s forthcoming free trade agreements with
the United States and Asian countries. These would, he said, make
educational standards more important than ever and called on business
and academic leaders to help find ways to improve the skills of
the workforce.
His
words found an echo with Leiva who, looking to set up a technology
business, had already decided that Chile was a good place for entrepreneurs.
“I also trusted Lagos and was influenced by what he said,”
he recalls.
Leiva
went on to find a group of Chilean investors - “it was a struggle”
he admits - and to found i-Education Holdings, a company that would
provide schools with a platform of multimedia-based educational
tools. The technology Leiva brought to Chile was Video Streaming
On Demand, which allows digital audio and video resources to be
transmitted in real time via the Internet into the classroom.
“Streaming
is the best educational technology available in the world,”
says Sara Basilacos, head of marketing at i-Education, “and
this is the first time it has been used in education in Latin America.”
“Teachers
need only a computer and an Internet connection to use our materials
to improve the quality of their classes,” says Basilacos.
Taking the example of a biology video showing a cell dividing, she
talks of a “virtuous circle” between teacher and students,
whereby access to attractive high-quality material, in an ordered
form, makes for more interesting, enjoyable classes.
Motivation,
behavior and attendance all improve, she says, as do results. “In
North America, studies have shown that this technology has improved
students’ capacity to learn by 12.6%; in Chile, where the
infrastructure is way behind, the impact has been greater,”
she adds.
Using
the new technology, i-Education developed MiClase, a product tailored
to the needs of the Chilean curriculum. Today, the company’s
15-strong staff work alongside external employees, designing and
producing material, improving the technology and supporting schools.
Also
providing material are national and international organizations
- among them Discovery School and United Streaming, two educational
services related to the Discovery TV channel. When i-Education signed
its agreement with Discovery Networks, the ceremony was headed by
President Lagos, Leiva proudly recalls.
Aiming
to bring the best educational practices from the U.S. to Chile,
i-Education has also formed a partnership with Virginia-based Fairfield
Language Technologies and now imports its renowned Rosetta Stone
language learning software.
In
Chile, the company sells its product to around 200 schools, 40 %
of these private, the rest municipal. The main courses on offer
are biology, history, physics, chemistry and mathematics - all at
secondary level - at an annual subscription cost of around two million
pesos (some US$3,700). And, says Basilacos, the renewal rate is
virtually 100%.
International
expansion
But,
as its business consolidated in Chile, i-Education also started
to look overseas. “Chile is a small country,” says Leiva,
“and we always thought that everything we could develop here
would be for export.”
His
sights rested primarily on the U.S. Hispanic community, a massive
market made up of 11 million households. And it was the state of
Virginia and its George Mason University which gave Leiva the break
he needed.
As
part of its efforts to create a cluster of information technology
companies, the University’s Enterprise Center operates an
International Business Accelerator program. And, in June this year,
i-Education - the first representative from Latin America - opened
for business there, alongside companies from countries like Japan,
Finland and Germany.
i-Education
has also joined the Northern Virginia Technology Council, which
works to improve the teaching of Hispanic children through educational
technology. One pilot project, in which the company has been involved,
is the provision of free after-school computing centers where underprivileged
children can navigate the Internet and make use of special educational
resources.
Leiva
himself is now also based in the U.S. His decision to move there
was, he says, based on research which showed that foreign companies
were more likely to succeed there if their leader actually lived
in the country.
But
i-Education’s position as a proven Chilean business also provided
it with a valuable platform for working in the U.S. “They
are facing problems with their Spanish-speaking students,”
explains Leiva, “and a successful company from Latin America
was very welcome and Chile has a good reputation as a country.”
Twenty-five
schools in Washington, New York and Virginia are already using i-Education’s
technology for their Hispanic students, and the company is preparing
to sign an agreement with a San Francisco-based business to distribute
its product in California. The uptake of i-Education’s products
in the U.S. has been faster than he could have hoped, reports Leiva.
“It
was amazing; we reached our six-month milestones in just three months,”
he reports.
As
a result, i-Education anticipates that, over the next year, half
its projected revenues of US$5 million will be generated by the
U.S. market, while the other half comes from Chile and Peru, where
the company is also marketing its product.
“There
is so much money in the U.S., and the culture here is to move quickly
to try out a new product,” explains Leiva. In other words,
the opportunities - as President Lagos predicted - are there, and
Chilean companies can succeed.
In
Leiva’s experience, part of what it takes is confidence. “Chileans
need to believe they can conquer new markets and they need to compare
themselves to developed countries, not their neighbors,” he
maintains.
Steady
steps to concrete the incentive for the adoption of new technologies
Santiago,
Chile – 31 Aug 2006
The
Law Project that will be send to the Congress was signed by Mr.
Andrés Velasco, the Treasury Minister, at the Liceo Industrial
Vicente Pérez Rosales, in presence of its Director Mr. Julio
Moreno and Miss Sara Basilacos, Marketing and Services Manager from
i-Education Holdings.
The
measurements of plan Chile Compite launched by Mr. Andrés
Velasco the Treasury Minister, will be closed of becoming real with
the sign of Project of Incentive for the adoption of New Technologies
Law, carried out today at Liceo Industrial Vicente Pérez
Rosales.
This
plan contains measurements that not only will made our country be
more prepared to face the challenges of the new agreements of Free
Trade but also it willbring real benefits for the base of our social
growing, that is education, the same will apeen to the educational
establishments that use intensive technology tools, tio improve
the learning, because one of the 15 measurements that is planned
to adopt is about the Chilean enterprises to adopt new technologies
with the purpose of giving better services to the users.
The
incentive planned in the project is to standarize in a 15% the additional
tax for the payments of importing software, formula, patents, engineering
works and technical advising.
In
case of education, this iniciative will let Chilean students to
have tools of top level, intensive in avant-garde technologies,
like the ones offered by MiClase School in different educational
establishments, among them, the Liceo Vicente Pérez Rosales,
a better prices and with major quality.
The
signing of the project of Incentive of the adoption of New Technologies
Law, will benefit the usage of the software MiClase School, among
others, because at getting down additional tax of import, the cost
of development will be also reduced, that, will allow the company
to be more competitive internationally, the best technology may
come to the country, with minor investments and the final user may
have access to the best educational technology at a lower price.
Chilean
company targets Hispanic students to boost test scores
Fairfax,
Va, USA – 10 Aug 2006
A company
from Chile called i-Education Holdings, Inc. (i-Ed) is the newest
participant in the Mason Enterprise Center's International Business
Accelerator located in Fairfax.
The
center, which is affiliated with George Mason University, has forged
business partnerships with 15 companies from seven countries over
the last five years.
The
i-Ed company offers a suite of learning tools that delivers educational
multimedia content to classrooms and computer labs. The firm's MiClase
program provides teachers and students access to thousands of curriculum
based video-clips, software activities, enriched animation and Internet
links.
For
more about the Mason Enterprise Center's International Business
Development Program, visit www.masonenterprisecenter.org
Chilean
Company Targets Hispanic Students to Boost Test Scores
Fairfax,
Va, USA – 24 Jul 2006
i-Education
Holdings Inc. plans to replicate its success in the Latin American
educational market by introducing a revolutionary e-learning software
package to math and science secondary school students in the USA.
i-Education
Holdings, Inc. (i-Ed) is the newest participant in the Mason Enterprise
Center’s unique International Business Accelerator. The Center
has forged business partnerships with 15 companies from 7 countries
over the last five year. i-Ed offers a powerful suite of learning
tools that deliver attractive and educational multimedia content
to classrooms and computer labs. i-Ed’s MiClase program provides
teachers and students access to thousands of curriculum based video-clips,
software activities, enriched animations and Internet links. By
incorporating this powerful and engaging tool into the classroom,
teachers have the ability to enrich the learning experience of their
students for better scores.
MiClase
delivers its content from a Classmart (a proprietary internet appliance)
connected to LAN of schools. Classmart contains more than twenty
five thousand of digital educational resources in Spanish and works
as a streaming server, web, cache and hard disk. This e-library
inside the Classmart is automatically updated every night from i-Ed
central servers. Teachers can access to MiClase from everywhere
with an internet connection with login and password and create or
select a multimedia battery of resources to enrich their next class.
From
its offices in Chile, Peru and now Virginia, i-Ed empowers teachers
and students using cutting edge technologies in the learning process.
“i-Education
Holdings has a proven system to boost the performance of Spanish-speaking
students 12 to 20 percent on standardized tests”, says Marshall
Ferrin, the Center’s Director of International Business Development.
“We look forward to meeting complimentary firms in the region
to team with to enter the secondary school marketplace,” adds
Gilbert E. Leiva, CEO, i-Education Holdings.
Minister
of Finance Visits technological Center in USA
Virginia,
USA – 8 Jun 2006
Minister
Andrés Velasco and the business delegation visited a Center
of High Technology in Virginia, to share experiences on innovation
and promote the creation of alliances to encourage technological
development.
Within
the scope of President Michelle Bachelet’s visit to the United
States, the minister of finance and the delegation of business people
visited, this afternoon, the Northern Virginia Technology Council,
one of the major private technological centers in that country.
The
event was attended by the business people comprising the official
delegation:: Alfredo Piquer, president of Optimisa; Mauricio Russo,
CEO of Casa e Ideas; Luis Vera, CEO of Prospect, and Ronald Bown,
president of the , president of the Chilean Association of Exporters.
These are entrepreneurs related to innovation, technological development
and the opening of new markets, whose incorporation into the delegation
shows the emphasis the Government is giving to these areas in the
government program as well as in the main topics of the May 21 speech.
The
Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) is a private entity
that gathers over 1,100 companies of all the areas of the sector,
including information technology, Internet, telecommunications,
bio-IT, software/hardware, among others.
After
a tour of the facilities NTCV members exchanged viewpoints with
the Chilean visitors regarding each other’s development and
their future projects. NVTC CEO, Bobbie Kilberg, explained that
as a result of the own companies’ financial contributions,
the entity offers educational programs, contact networks, and specialized
advice on all business aspects to its members, which are grouped
based on their interests and the development of common experiences.
On
his part, Minister Velasco highlighted the relevance of innovation
and technology to boost productivity. He said that, to date, innovation
in Chile concentrates on clusters related to mining, agriculture,
forestry and fish farming, and the idea is to enhance and expand
it to other sectors. He stressed that, as a result of the current
Chie-USA FTA, Chilean companies may access to contracts with the
US government, an opportunity that must also be an incentive to
open new markets and create better products and services.
On
the occasion, the representative of George Mason University, Marshall
Ferrin, spoke about an initiative to develop international markets
designed to prepare and connect foreign companies in order to do
business in the United States. He referred to the first Chilean
company to benefit from this system, I- Education Holding, an educational
software company, whose CEO is Gilbert Leiva.
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