Pluralsight Adds to its 500-Course Library Nearly 100 PeepCode Video Tutorials in Ruby, JavaScript, Unix, Git and Other Open-Source Staples 

PeepCode Founder Geoffrey Grosenbach and its Network of Instructors to Steer Pluralsight's Future Development of Open-Source Content 

SALT LAKE CITY – Online training platform Pluralsight is making a decisive foray into the open-source coding movement by acquiring Seattle-based PeepCode, the leading training resource for professional open-source developers. Announced today, the acquisition extends Pluralsight's high-quality training content for Web and IT pros into the open-source domain of hardcore programmers. 

“The most frequent request we've heard from our customers over the last seven years is 'Make more tutorials!'” 

Pluralsight's rapidly growing course library will see a 20 percent spike with the integration of nearly 100 PeepCode screencasts on Ruby, JavaScript, Unix, Git and others. Both sites operate on a premium content model, and users from each will benefit from the incorporation of PeepCode content into the Pluralsight catalog. 

"Folding PeepCode's unrivaled open-source content into our platform is a watershed for our users, who have traditionally revolved around Microsoft technologies," Pluralsight CEO Aaron Skonnard said. "It’s also a windfall for the PeepCode community, which inherits a massive library authored by the world's foremost instructors."

The acquisition not only brings to Pluralsight existing PeepCode content but also the preeminent programmers behind their creation. This includes the site's founder, Geoffrey Grosenbach, who will assume an executive role to head up Pluralsight's open-source division, as well as his network of several dozen PeepCode instructors. 

"The most frequent request we've heard from our customers over the last seven years is 'Make more tutorials!'" Grosenbach said. "Startups and large enterprises alike are adopting open-source software, but there are far too few resources for professional open-source developers. If they don't know how to use your software, they won't. We are happy to meet that demand now as part of Pluralsight." 

Bringing in specialized knowledge bases and sites like PeepCode is a key component of Pluralsight's future growth strategy, Skonnard said. Acquiring content from established and respected brands in the developer community will complement the 30-50 courses produced by Pluralsight's stable of instructors each month, which translates into even more value for current and future Pluralsight subscribers. 

And by plunging headlong into open source, Pluralsight is demonstrating its commitment to provide professional training resources for the entire developer community, Skonnard said. It's a clarion call to open-source students and teachers, the latter standing to make a name for themselves under the Pluralsight label. Pluralsight instructor Scott Allen, for instance, became a millionaire with the royalties he earned from his C#, jQuery and CSS courses in the Pluralsight library. He is on pace to earn $1 million in 2013 alone. 

"If you're an open-source guru, give us a call," Skonnard said. 

Seeing such devotion to high-caliber instruction made this decision easier for Grosenbach. Since its founding in 2006, PeepCode has received many offers, "but what distinguished Pluralsight was the quality of the people running it and our shared focus on professional development," he said. "I'm confident we'll fit right in." 

The acquisition is Pluralsight's second big move this month, preceded by former Skullcandy vice president Brett Barlow's appointment as chief marketing officer. Barlow joins other big names -- including chief financial officer Greg Woodward, from Huntsman Gay Global Capital -- who have been drawn to the rising star of online education. At Skullcandy, Barlow steered the audio brand's image in its revenue leap from $20 million to $300 million, culminating in a 2011 IPO. On a similar trajectory, Pluralsight has now amassed nearly 300,000 users across 100 different countries. With the recent $27.5 million funding round from Insight Venture Partners, Pluralsight has become the premiere training resource for Web and IT professionals.