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TOP STORIES FOR WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29, 2005 Online Enrollments Continue to Rise Britain Sees Fundamental Shift in Publishing Harvard Prof Changes Mind, Sides with Entertainment Industry Phishers Locked Up Apple Offers Podcasts ONLINE ENROLLMENTS CONTINUE TO RISE Research firm Eduventures has released a new report that puts the number of students enrolled in wholly online courses last year at close to one million, doubling the number from just two years earlier. The report predicts another 500,000 or more students will enroll in online courses over the next two years. The company estimates that by the end of 2005, students enrolled in entirely online courses will constitute more than 15 percent of the total number of students enrolled at degree-granting institutions in the United States. Although much of the growth in online course enrollments is taking place in the for-profit higher education market, nonprofit institutions are closing the gap, according to Sean Gallagher, senior analyst at Eduventures. As more and more nonprofit institutions put their courses online, he said, "the rate at which for-profits are stealing market share is beginning to slow down." Chronicle of Higher Education, 28 June 2005 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/prm/daily/2005/06/2005062802t.htm BRITAIN SEES FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT IN PUBLISHING A new study by the British Library predicts that by the year 2020, 90 percent of newly published work in the United Kingdom will be available electronically. Just 10 percent of works published then will be printed only, and half of those published electronically will also be printed, according to the study. Lynne Brindley, chief executive of the library, said such a "seismic shift" in publishing requires different methods to ensure adequate protection and storage of the electronic materials. The library is developing a digital storage system that it hopes will prove sufficiently robust. Three copies of every item will exist, with one stored off-site for recovery in the event of a catastrophic failure. A spokesperson from the library noted that as published content is increasingly in electronic format, officials must make decisions about what new types of content they will archive, such as Web sites and possibly even blog content. BBC, 29 June 2005 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4633423.stm HARVARD PROF CHANGES MIND, SIDES WITH ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY Although he previously filed a brief supporting the defendants in the Grokster case recently decided by the Supreme Court, Harvard Law Professor Charles R. Nesson said he now believes the court decided appropriately in finding for the entertainment industry. Nesson, who specializes in technology law and serves as the faculty codirector of the Berkman Center for Internet and Society, said that during oral arguments in the case, which were held in March, he was convinced that file-sharing businesses that cater to individuals who violate copyright should be held accountable. "It is a good decision," he said, "because it says you can't be a total predator." In his earlier brief, Nesson had highlighted his concern that a ruling in favor of studios would inhibit plans to establish a digital library at the Berkman Center. Because the center is a nonprofit, however, and because the center would take demonstrable steps to limit copyright violations, Nesson said the courts would be unlikely to apply similar standards of liability to the digital library. Chronicle of Higher Education, 29 June 2005 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/prm/daily/2005/06/2005062902t.htm PHISHERS LOCKED UP Two men have been sentenced to prison in Britain for orchestrating a phishing scheme that used stolen identities to pilfer as much as 6.5 million pounds over two years. Douglas Harvard and Lee Elwood were sentenced to six and four years respectively for their parts in the phishing ring, which authorities said garnered at least 750,000 pounds during one 10-month period. The men allegedly worked with individuals in Russia to traffic in personal information and the money stolen using that information. Mick Deat, deputy head of Britain's National Hi-Tech Crime Unit, issued a statement thanking the U.S. Secret Service and the FBI for their assistance in the investigation. The statement also expressed Deat's hope that the convictions will discourage others who might consider such scams. CNET, 29 June 2005 http://news.com.com/2100-7348_3-5766860.html APPLE OFFERS PODCASTS Although Apple Computer's iPod music player sparked the practice known as podcasting, until now the company did not offer a podcasting service. That changed this week with the release of a new version of the iTunes software and updates to the iTunes music store. The new software allows users to subscribe to podcasts, and the store now features more than 3,000 audio files available as podcasts. As with other podcasting services, users subscribe to particular podcasts; any time those users connect their personal music devices--which do not have to be iPods--to Internet-connected computers, new audio files that have been added to podcasts they are subscribed to are automatically downloaded to the music players. Users can listen to them at their convenience. Many see podcasting as a revolution in how audio content is disseminated, possibly challenging radio as the leading vehicle for audio content. New York Times, 29 June 2005 (registration req'd) http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/29/technology/29apple.html ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your settings, or access the Edupage archive, visit http://www.educause.edu/Edupage/639 Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE RESOURCES The EDUCAUSE Resource Center is a repository for information concerning use and management of IT in higher education. 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