by ROBINSON MEYER, The Atlantic
EdX, then, is more of a mystery. As a non-profit, it’s not concerned with, well, profit. But it is concerned with its own survival, so, this month, it debuted a new way of making money. So far in October, EdX has announced partnerships using the Open EdX code with the nations of France and China. Both countries will adopt EdX’s software for their own national MOOC networks—and, for an ongoing fee, EdX will supply technical support and advice. I talked to Anant Argarwal, the president of EdX, about these new national deals earlier this month. He saw them as an expansion of a contract EdX already holds with the International Monetary Fund, in which EdX hosts and administers courses for that bank for a fee. “From a business standpoint, does it make sense to give [the platform] away [like this]?” he said. “The answer is yes.” Especially since organizations will then pay you to advise how they should use the platform.
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