Top 7 eLearning Statistics & Facts

With eLearning use showing gains in nearly every sector and an increasing number of organisations turning to eLearning as they recognise its effectiveness, the eLearning industry is on the fast track. Organisations are adapting/ continuing to adopt eLearning, currently at a rate of 13% per year (a pace that is projected to stay consistent through 2017). With such adoption rates, the global eLearning market is expected to reach $107 billion by 2015, according to New Report by Global Industry Analysts, Inc.

Here are top 10 statistics and facts for 2015 listed in no particular order that indicate the growth of eLearning.

1. 1. The Learning Management Systems market stands at over $2 billion, according to Forbes, and is continuing to grow. MarketsandMarkets forecasts the LMS market to grow from $2.55 billion in 2013 to $7.83 billion in 2018, at a CAGR of 25.2% during the period 2017 to 2018. The overall size of market is equal to the sum of the revenues from academic and corporate users of LMS. According to the latest research on the corporate Learning Management Systems market by Bersin, the LMS market is expected to experience a growth of 23.17% during the forecasted period. Corporate LMS market is well over $2.5 billion today and grew by over 21% in the year 2014. LMS market in the US is predicted to grow at a CAGR of 23.20 percent over the period 2014-2019, as per a report on LMS market in the US by ResearchandMarkets.
2. 2. The worldwide market for Self-paced eLearning reached $42.7 billion in 2013. The five-year compound annual growth rate is 4.4% and revenues will reach $53.0 billion by 2018, according to the Ambient Insight’s Self-paced eLearning Market report. The report also states that the top ten countries with the highest eLearning growth rates in the world are Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Slovakia, Nepal, Mozambique, Indonesia, and Pakistan (seven out of ten are in the Asia region.) The growth rates in all of these countries are above 30%, more than six times the worldwide aggregate growth rate. An independent report by GessDubai.com states that eLearning market sees revenues rising to $560.7m in 2016 in the Middle East.
3. 3. Tech Pro Research’s latest survey shows that the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) movement is booming, with 74% of organisations either already using or planning to allow employees to bring their own devices to work. Wearables are slowly being incorporated under the BYOD umbrella. Currently 29% of respondent organisations were using, planning to use or budgeting for wearables and have included them in their BYOD plan. IoT devices are showing stronger gains than wearables, with more business presence (43% using or planning to use these) and participation in BYOD plans. The BYOD market is expected to reach $238.39 billion by 2020, according to a study by Grand View Research.
4. 4. According to the 2014 Training Industry Report, more and more organisations are showing an increasing focus on training to close skill gaps, and activity. The report says that among the respondent organisations, 44% intend to purchase online learning tools and systems, 41% are looking into purchasing Learning Management Systems (LMSs), 37% plan on purchasing authoring tools/systems and 33% aim to purchase classroom tools and systems.
5. 5. The Ambient Insight’s 2014-2019 China Mobile Learning Market research states that, “the five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for Mobile Learning products in China is 15.4% and revenues will more than double to $2.3 billion in 2019, up from the $1.1 billion reached in 2014″. The revenues for Mobile Edugames in North America reached $227.9 million in 2013, according to Ambient Insight’s 2013-2018 North America Mobile Edugame Market research. The five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for the same is 12.5% and revenues will spike to $410.27 million by 2018.
6. 6. Tablet adoption for business purposes, among small and mid-sized businesses, (SMBs) is gaining traction, with 97% saying anytime, anywhere access to data and applications makes employees more effective and 83% indicating that making business applications and data available on smartphones and tablets would have a high or medium business impact, according to a recent report from Dimensional Research.
7. 7. According to the Verto Analytics’ Device Ecosystem US 2014 report, consumers show an increasingly polarised preference towards device and platform as technology evolves. As consumers learn to trust their devices they develop brand loyalty, and as marketers learn more about consumers’ choices, they begin to understand that loyalty plays a key role in consumer demands. The study found that 9% of iPhone owners have an Android phone, and 5% of Android phone owners have an iPhone. Interestingly, this multi-device and multi-platform effect is repeated within the tablet market as well, as 9% of iPad owners have an Android tablet, and 5% of Android tablet owners have an iPad. This highlights the multi-device learning scenario where each learner owns more than 2 devices and switches between them for learning.

Online training/eLearning is an investment. As seen in these statistics, implementing an effective eLearning programme can be an invaluable investment that stands to generate greater business performance and learning outcomes for your organisation. 2015 holds the promise for expansion of eLearning both from the learner’s perspective and organisational context.

Do you think these statistics indicate growth? Please leave your comments below.