CreativeLive Adds $7.5M From Greylock

Online-learning sites for the masses have become one of Silicon Valley’s hottest start-up trends. Now, a company that focuses on online education for entrepreneurs is on the boil. CreativeLive, a site that focuses on Internet classes for entrepreneurs, said on Tuesday it won a $7.5 million investment from Greylock Partners, Reuters reported Tuesday. In addition, the company enlisted Mika Salmi, former president of global digital media at Viacom and co-founder of AtomFilms, as chief executive.

(Reuters) – Online-learning sites for the masses have become one of Silicon Valley’s hottest start-up trends. Now, a company that focuses on online education for entrepreneurs is on the boil.

CreativeLive, a site that focuses on Internet classes for entrepreneurs, said on Tuesday it won a $7.5 million investment from Greylock Partners, a firm known for backing companies such as eBay and Google.

In addition, the company enlisted Mika Salmi, former president of global digital media at Viacom and co-founder of AtomFilms, as chief executive.

CreativeLive’s offerings include lectures from Tim Ferriss, author of The 4-Hour Workweek, and Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Vincent Laforet. They are free if watched live or available for a fee if watched later.

The service will have a familiar ring to those aware of start-ups such as Coursera, which offers free online classes from top universities, or Udemy, which allows students to take online courses across a wide range of topics.

Another offering, Codeacademy, offers free online courses in popular programming languages such as Python. It recently raised $10 million from backers including Index Ventures.

CreativeLive was founded two years ago in Seattle by photographer Chase Jarvis and entrepreneur Craig Swanson.