Blackboard Inc.

1899 L St. NW

Year founded: 1997

Industry: information technology

Post 200 Category: Top 125 Companies

Revenue: $111.40 Million

Net Income/Loss: $10.05 Million

Earnings per share: $0.21

Dividend: n/a

Stockholder equity: $69.11 Million

Auditor: Ernst & Young LLP

Stock: BBBB

Assets: $148.40 Million

Market capitalization: $496.65 Million

52-week high: 23.4 6/18/2004

52-week low: 13.54 1/12/2005

President and CEO: Michael L. Chasen

CFO: Peter Q. Repetti

Employees: 481

Local employees: 289

Description: Blackboard is an educational software company that allows students, educators and parents to share course materials, assignments and other academic information over the Web. The company also provides commerce systems for campuses that allow students to use their identification cards to pay for meals, safely access campus buildings, buy items from off-campus merchants and even pay their tuition. Blackboard's systems are used at more than 2,000 U.S. schools, colleges and universities.

Developments: Blackboard, whose co-founders Matthew S. Pittinsky and Michael L. Chasen became prominent spokesmen for the local tech industry in the late 1990s, had its initial public offering in June. Its stock soared 43 percent over the offering price. The past year has been defined by strong growth: Revenue grew 20 percent in 2004, to $111 million, and the company won 40 new clients in China through a joint venture. It also added international clients in Britain and Germany. The District company also has offices in Phoenix, Amsterdam and Tokyo. It says it is expanding investments in its sales force, product innovation and globalization efforts this year. Like other software companies, it faces challenges from "open-source" systems that are often collaboratively developed by volunteers across the Internet, allow users to change and add to their work, and frequently are less expensive than proprietary systems.