The global e-learning market is forecast to witness a period of lucrative growth over the coming years owing to factors such as increasing smartphone and Internet penetration, according to research by Graphical Research. High demand for advanced learning techniques across the corporate sector, and rising government support for the use of digital learning technologies, are also vital parameters that will help increase the popularity of digital learning.
Today, a growing need to offer efficient learning programs that deliver skill-based training to workers across the corporate sector is being seen worldwide. Supported by rapidly improving Internet infrastructure, this is effectively fueling the adoption of mobile and online learning, which is having a positive impact on e-learning industry revenues.
Apart from helping employees upgrade their skills, e-learning solutions also help enterprises record precise information, as well as document employee performance in an effort to enhance their work efficiency. Additionally, these solutions allow employees to give feedback in real time, helping enhance the e-learning experience further.
A growing number of large corporate enterprises are adopting innovative e-learning platforms to meet the need to deliver efficient training to their globally distributed workforce. Given their online nature, e-learning platforms allow companies to train their remote workforce, which includes employees working in manufacturing facilities or in the field in a uniform manner.
Meanwhile, the new work conditions created by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic are expected to prove beneficial for the overall e-learning market. Numerous educational institutions and corporate organizations are adopting digital learning solutions to impart training and knowledge while ensuring social distancing.
These solutions also are being used to provide up-to-date knowledge to train front-line workers around the globe. Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) started offering crucial e-learning courses through its portal to front-line healthcare workers to teach them hygiene, treatments, and preventive measures to be taken while taking care of patients. Such emerging initiatives are likely to further diversify the revenue streams for the e-learning industry.
3 Regional Trends
- Growing traction of LMS technology in North America
The learning management system (LMS) technology segment is anticipated to gain immense traction through the analysis period attributed to the increasing demand for enhanced enterprise learning objectives. LMS software helps instructors deliver important documents or materials, track progress, administer tests, and manage records. Additionally, LMSs also help corporate enterprises save time and money through efficient platform management, data personalization, multimedia learning, advanced reporting, and enhanced communication.
Today, collaborating with providers of LMS solution has become a crucial strategy among content developers as it improves the content and offers strong tracking capabilities, which are easier to manage. All in all, the North America e-learning market is slated to record a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of more than 7 percent over the forecast timeframe.
- Increasing demand for e-learning services from the European corporate sector
The European corporate sector is rapidly incorporating the latest technologies and solutions to ensure maximum profitability and productivity. This emerging trend will drive e-learning market share in Europe in the coming years. There has been a notable rise in the overall number of medium and small-scale businesses throughout Europe.
Several regional employers are adopting training techniques that can reduce the amount of training time taken from work hours while delivering learning flexibility to their employees. This is fueling the adoption of innovative mobile learning solutions that allow employees to learn on the go through video-based content.
The industry also is witnessing ample support from the government sector as many government agencies look to educate employees and the general populace about the Coronavirus pandemic and ways to stay safe. Recently, after the recommendation of the UK government, Nimble started offering a COVID-19 Awareness Course free of charge on its platform. With such a favorable growth outlook, the Europe e-learning industry is expected to witness a CAGR of 8 percent through the projected timeline.
- Rising Internet and smartphone penetration across APAC
The Asia-Pacific (APAC) e-learning market is slated to experience lucrative growth over the coming years owing to rapidly increasing smartphone and Internet penetration in the region. In fact, approximately 9 out of 10 people in South Korea owns a smartphone. With more than 95 percent Internet penetration across the region, e-learning industry is likely to gain considerable traction over the coming years.
Given the regional COVID-19 situation, mobile e-learning technology is expected to record significant momentum in the Asia-Pacific region. Additionally, the growing adoption of portable gadgets such as smartphones, laptops, and tablets is likely to further stimulate market demand. Corporate employees are turning to mobile learning services as they can sign up for short, modularized courses on tablets or smartphones even during commutes.
This enables them to save time spent on their training during work hours. Moreover, it allows the company to train a workforce that is globally distributed using a single unified digital platform. Furthermore, increasing number of subject matter experts (SMEs) across countries such as India and South Korea will favorably outline the overall growth graph of high-quality e-learning and mobile learning solutions. Overall, the APAC e-learning market is slated to record a CAGR of more than 11 percent over the projected time period.
Key players that are making substantial contribution toward the industry’s growth include: Adobe Systems Inc.; Apollo Education Group; Citrix Education; Cisco Systems, Inc.; Microsoft Corporation; Meridian Knowledge Solutions; Skillsoft; Oracle Corporation; and SAP SE.
