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Yes ... all good points! I am making a distinction between high and low "effort" based largely on two things 1) digitizing (and possibility re-designing) full scale face to face course content and 2) tutor support. I distinguish this degree of supplier "effort" from the effort associated with making existing content (basically, "as is" content) more freely available online and under a more open license - for example, the course syllabus, teacher notes, journal reports, student papers, and so on. Also, while there is effort associated with this and in setting up an online community space for learners, there is no need for other "high touch" efforts such as tutor support, course design, administrative support for credentialing, etc. I feel this latter type of learning community (say centered around research topics, communities of practice) using a LabSpace type format as an example would be a great place to see foundation money flow (again, as apposed to supporting full scale course "conversion"). An institution's value to learners is far more than the digital content it releases. The institution also serves a valuable learner need by bringing people together to network and learn - not just teachers, but also peer learners. Whether or not one agrees or disagrees that this is a more "low touch" effort for the supplier, what an amazing way for an institution to support more open learning! ... and true ... teachers (and others) are users, too. However, do we know that they really looking for full scale courses? And if they are ... most licenses have non-commercial restrictions, so we have a pretty small subset of teachers who could use this course content - just those who would be reusing it for non-commercial purposes. Again, it seems like a fairly small subset. However, isn't it possible that these teachers would derive similar benefit from specific pieces of content, such as the syllabus, ideas for learner practice, etc. If so, aren't there many other more "low touch" ways to support this than digitizing entire courses? Thank you for your comments! It is great to have my initial reflections on these topics tested! Jennifer Maddrell

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