Not to be outdone by the initial $103 million investment it received two years ago, Lynda recently got another $186 million round of investments, this time led by the international investment firm TPC Capital. According to venture capital database CB Insights, this is the largest education technology investment deal since they started tracking the sector’s numbers six years ago.

As we previously reported, Lynda.com held out for 17 years until it received it’s first round of funding in 2013, relying instead on building a successful subscription business from the ground up first.

Lynda.com offers professional training video tutorial services to individuals and enterprises, with subscriptions to individuals starting at $25 a month, offering unlimited access to the 5,700 available courses. The company also has many enterprise clients, including companies, governments, and educational institutions. Together this adds up to 5.4 million individual and enterprise customers.

Last year Lynda.com reported more than $150 million in revenue and Chief Executive Eric Robison says it has been profitable since 1997.

According to the New York Times, Robison says the money will be used to expand into the international market, acquire other companies in the education space, and add new courses to its catalogue of video tutorials.

Insider Take:

By establishing a successful subscription business and eschewing outside investment for so long, Lynda.com validates the reliance on the quality of your content first and foremost to drive the growth of your subscription business. Because of this, Lynda.com is a healthy company now poised for even more growth through acquisition and international expansion in the years ahead. Subscription businesses with major ambitions should take note of Lynda.com’s path to success.