Hi Michael,

Embedding video within an OER international website is complex.
Historically this has been a topical issue in the WikiEducator community.
 I've been quietly hoping that HTML5 will solve our challenges,
particularly native support for playback of open file formats -- but I
think I may need a little more patience.

Our commitment to free cultural works approved licensing means that apart
from open licensing, we have a commitment to provide access to editable and
open formats of the source video files.  Revise and Remix are core
components of the OER definition.

A general practice has emerged over the past few years with regards to
embedding video,  but ideally we need to provide clear guidelines. Perhaps
now is a good time to commence a work group to progress these policy
issues.

So here are the issues:

   - The Kaltura extension is no longer supported - in the early day's
   Kaltura were responsive in keeping things operational in Mediawiki, but
   this no longer seems to be a priority. So we can no longer use Kaltura.
   - It is possible to upload videos to the Wikimedia Commons in free file
   formats and embed within WikiEducator which meets all our requirements for
   free cultural works approved licensing. This works well for videos of
   general interest, but not ideal for video material which is too specific,
   for example an video introduction for a WikiEducator course which is not
   hosted within the Wikimedia projects. I don't think it's ethical to use the
   free hosting services of the Wikimedia Foundation for initiatives which are
   out of scope with the Wikimedia family of projects.
   - While free file formats are our preferred solution, there is a
   difficult challenge - namely users whose freedoms have been compromised
   through no fault of their own. The practice where some employers lock down
   desktop machines restricting the users freedom to download the codecs to
   play free file format videos is sadly widespread. While respecting freedom
   of choice - we do not wish to deny any educator or learner from viewing
   video material.
   - Previously, the no-cost BlipTV service offered a valuable prototype
   solution. Users could upload free-file formats, tag videos with CC
   licenses, and BlipTV would automatically mirror a copy of the file on the
   Internet Archive. However, the support for providing copies on the Internet
   Archive discontinued, followed by BlipTV stopping their free hosting
   service. This highlights the risks for an OER community using "no-cost"
   corporate services. (In fact today I've been uploading replacements to
   legacy BlipTV hosted videos from the first meeting of the OERu. Unnecessary
   waste of productive time :-()
   - Now that YouTube provides for CC-BY licensing - that solves one
   historical challenge of why we have not supported the embedding of Youtube
   video. However, YouTube does not support the CC-BY-SA license which may be
   the preferred choice for pro-freedom WikiEducators. Furthermore, to the
   best of my knowledge, there is no reliable mechanism to restrict embedded
   advertisements. The WikiEducator community is committed to providing an
   advertising free website, and this has been a core value since our
   inception.
   - Vimeo has provided a useful prototype solution, particularly for OERu
   partners. Vimeo supports creative commons licenses, open file format video
   for download and an easy pathway for WikiEducators to embed video in the
   wiki. The challenge for OERu partners is that the terms of service of the
   no-cost version of Vimeo restricts commercial use.  So for OERu partners
   who will be offering assessment for credit on a fee for service basis
   cannot use the no-cost Vimeo service.  In the case of OERu courses, our
   partners have funded their own Pro-accounts on Vimeo to ensure that we do
   not breach the terms of service.
   - At a technical level, the OER Foundation could host video material on
   our servers (including server side conversion service for those who are
   unable to upload video in free file formats.) However, as a small
   non-profit Foundation -- we do not have the funding to cover these costs at
   this time.

With this brief summary of some of the issues - -I would welcome a
committed group of volunteers to progress policy guidelines and
corresponding help resources regarding the embedding of rich media.

Wayne


On Mon, Mar 24, 2014 at 3:12 PM, Michael Verhaart <[email protected]>wrote:

> Hi everyone (In particular Jim)
>
> Am looking for a definitive list of things I can embed into WikiEducator
> (with Instructions as to how this is achieved) e.g. vimeo, rss feeds, etc.
> It would be nice to have this on the WikiEducator Help page (
> http://wikieducator.org/Help:Contents )
>
> I know the issue of embedding YouTube videos was addressed some years ago,
> but with YouTube offering creative commons content wondering if this should
> be re-discussed?
>
> Cheers Michael
>
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-- 
Wayne Mackintosh, Ph.D.
Director OER Foundation
UNESCO, COL and ICDE Chair in OER, Otago Polytechnic & OER Foundation
Skype: WGMNZ1
Twitter: Mackiwg

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