Pearson appoints Disney veteran Andy Bird as new chief executive August 24, 2020 Publishing group Pearson has appointed former Disney bigwig Andy Bird as its new chief executive. The company said Bird will take over from current boss John Fallon on 19 October. Fallon will step down from the board but remain as an adviser until the end of the year. Veteran media industry boss Bird, whose career [...]
Pearson issues 2020 profit warning on coronavirus closures March 23, 2020 Education publisher Pearson today issued a profit warning for 2020 and paused a £350m share buyback as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The firm, already suffering from a difficult transition from print to digital, warned it expects a “negative impact” on 2020 profit from closing its testing centres. The postponement of US state exam [...]
Pearson profit falters as US courseware business drags it down February 21, 2020 Education publisher Pearson posted underlying profit at the top end of a reduced guidance range for 2019 today, and warned its ongoing transition to digital will drag profits even lower in 2020. Pearson’s share price sank 4.4 per cent to 558.2p as traders digested the figures. The figures Operating profit halved to £275m in 2019, [...]
Pearson CEO to depart as it sells $675m stake in Penguin Random House December 18, 2019 Pearson’s chief executive today announced that he plans to step down in 2020, triggering a search for a successor. John Fallon said he would retire from the role as the education publishing business sold its final stake in Penguin Random House today. Read more: Pearson bags Home Office contract for English language tests He will [...]
Pearson bags Home Office contract to provide English language tests December 16, 2019 Publishing and education firm Pearson today said it has won a Home Office contract to provide English language tests for people seeking to work or live in the UK. The FTSE 100 company said it has secured a deal lasting a minimum of three years to provide Secure English Language Tests (SELTs), which are used [...]
Pearson holds full-year guidance as digital shift pays off July 26, 2019 Pearson has held its guidance for the full year as the firm’s ongoing shift from textbooks to digital formats drove robust trading in the first half. The publishing and education firm posted a two per cent decline in revenue to £1.83bn in the first six months of the year. Read more: Pearson sales slip as [...]
Tencent backs top AI startup in $24m injection May 20, 2019 A host of major businesses and venture capital firms have joined in a $24m (£18.9m) funding round for a Prowler.io, valuing the Cambridge artificial intelligence (AI) startup at $100m. Chinese media giant Tencent led the round, with publishing house Pearson and Monzo-backer Passion Capital also joining. Other investors included Amadeus Capital Partners, Atlantic Bridge, Cambridge [...]
London businesses ‘unaware’ of improvements to apprenticeship levy May 16, 2019 Only a quarter of London businesses are aware of the improvements to the apprenticeship levy that were announced in the Spring Statement, new research shows. In March the government announced that from April employers would see the co-investment rate the pay for apprentices cut from 10 per cent to five per cent. Read more: Apprenticeship [...]
Financial Times buys majority stake in tech media firm The Next Web March 5, 2019 The Financial Times (FT) has bought a controlling stake in tech media firm The Next Web (TNW) in a bid to expand its events offering. The FT said the move will boost its presence in the European tech market and will create synergies with its existing events division FT Live. Read more: German prosecutors probe [...]
Pearson sales slip as publisher eyes 2020 revenue growth February 22, 2019 Sales fell at education publisher Pearson in 2018 even as profits surged, the firm revealed today, as it confirmed a £500m pension insurance deal with Legal & General. Read more: Pearson seals £500m pension insurance deal with L&G The figures Revenue slipped nine per cent year on year to £4.1bn after Pearson took a £216m [...]