Edtech giant Byju’s is grappling with major service outages, with its flagship Android app disappearing from the Google Play Store and its website reduced to just a landing page. Existing users have reportedly been locked out of paid content and video lessons and most search-optimised content has vanished from the website.
According to a MoneyControl report, the disruption is due because of the payment delays to Amazon Web Services (AWS), which powers the company’s cloud infrastructure. As a result, core services such as app content, website functionality and video streaming have gone offline.
However, other apps from the edtech firm like Byju’s Exam Prep, for aspirants of competitive exams like the IAS, MBA, and UGC NET, as well as the Think and Learn Premium app continue to be listed on the platform.
This marks another blow for the once high-flying edtech firm that was valued at $22 billion. Byju’s has been under intense financial pressure, currently undergoing insolvency proceedings initiated by the BCCI to recover Rs 158 crore in unpaid dues from a sponsorship deal.
Founder Byju Raveendran, in recent public messages, acknowledged past missteps, including a $1.2 billion term loan taken in 2021, which he admitted should have been avoided in favour of equity funding. As part of “Byju’s 3.0”, Raveendran said the company would pivot from a profit-driven model to a purpose-led one.