> Skip to content
FEATURED:
  • Student-Success Resource Center
Sign In
  • News
  • Advice
  • The Review
  • Data
  • Current Issue
  • Virtual Events
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Resources
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Resources
Sign In
  • News
  • Advice
  • The Review
  • Data
  • Current Issue
  • Virtual Events
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Resources
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Resources
  • News
  • Advice
  • The Review
  • Data
  • Current Issue
  • Virtual Events
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Resources
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Resources
Sign In
ADVERTISEMENT
Wired Campus circle logo

Wired Campus

The latest on tech and education.

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Show more sharing options
Share
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Copy Link URLCopied!
  • Print

2 Leading Online Outsourcers Merge, Consolidating a Market

By  Marc Parry
October 26, 2010

More and more colleges are hiring for-profit companies to build and market their online programs, a controversial practice that worries some observers. This week the online-outsourcing industry is going through a significant consolidation. Two of its leading competitors, Embanet and Compass Knowledge Group, are merging.

We're sorry. Something went wrong.

We are unable to fully display the content of this page.

The most likely cause of this is a content blocker on your computer or network.

Please allow access to our site, and then refresh this page. You may then be asked to log in, create an account if you don't already have one, or subscribe.

If you continue to experience issues, please contact us at 202-466-1032 or help@chronicle.com

More and more colleges are hiring for-profit companies to build and market their online programs, a controversial practice that worries some observers. This week the online-outsourcing industry is going through a significant consolidation. Two of its leading competitors, Embanet and Compass Knowledge Group, are merging.

In the announcement, the companies billed the move as a “winning combination” for their clients, a long list of nonprofit institutions that includes well-known names like Northwestern University and George Washington University. That list is likely to grow: “In the next five years, we expect nearly four million new online learners will come into this market,” said Steve Fireng, chief executive of Embanet.

The question now will be whether a larger company is a better one, says Jay A. Halfond, dean of Metropolitan College and Extended Education at Boston University, which uses both Embanet and Compass. The corporate marriage, he says, will create “some interesting ethical challenges.”

“Will they be able to host competing programs from different universities, and build firewalls that reassure their university affiliates?” Mr. Halfond asked in an e-mail to The Chronicle. “We in higher education are accustomed to institutions that are built to last centuries—so working with dynamic, ever-changing for-profits can be very challenging in the volatility of their ownership, structure, growth, and staffing. It is not always a natural marriage, and like all marriages is based on trust, so it will be interesting to see whether this new company is better able to reassure universities of its stability and reliability.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Marc Parry
Marc Parry wrote for The Chronicle about scholars and the work they do. Follow him on Twitter @marcparry.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
  • Explore Content
    • Latest News
    • Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Professional Development
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Chronicle Intelligence
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    Explore Content
    • Latest News
    • Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Professional Development
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Chronicle Intelligence
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
  • Know The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Write for Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • Our Reporting Process
    • Advertise With Us
    • Brand Studio
    • DEI Commitment Statement
    • Accessibility Statement
    Know The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Write for Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • Our Reporting Process
    • Advertise With Us
    • Brand Studio
    • DEI Commitment Statement
    • Accessibility Statement
  • Account and Access
    • Manage Your Account
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Institutional Subscriptions
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
    Account and Access
    • Manage Your Account
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Institutional Subscriptions
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
  • Get Support
    • Contact Us
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • User Agreement
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
    Get Support
    • Contact Us
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • User Agreement
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037
© 2023 The Chronicle of Higher Education
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • facebook
  • linkedin