Babbel’s $10 million in funding translates into more mobile platforms

Babbel, an online and mobile system for learning foreign languages, picked up $10 million in a Series B funding round, and the company says it will use it to expand georgraphically and onto additional mobile platforms.

Reed Elsevier led the funding round, which included participation from Nokia Growth Partners and existing investors. This brings Berlin-based Babbel’s total funding to date up to $12.2 million.

Babbel states that its strongest footprint to date has been in home-country Germany, but it will use the funding to expand in Europe, the Americas and emerging markets.

Babbel supports learning programs for 13 languages, and its mobile offerings include iPad, iPhone, Android and Windows 8 apps.

“Nokia Growth Partners believes that in a converged digital world, every business must be mobile and this principle drives our investments,” says Walter Masalin, principal at Nokia Growth Partners. “As mobile transforms the way people learn, Babbel’s flexible and efficient solution supporting multiple platforms means it is well positioned to capitalize on this trend.”

Babbel’s mobile initiative could be bolstered by its recent acquisition of San Francisco-based PlaySay, an iPhone language-learning game.