Nuvvo is for Sale

Nuvvo is a web2.0 company that offered the management of online courses to anyone wanting to deliver a course on the web. Is is now for sale . It is interesting to note that I checked the site out when it first launched, but didn't really go back to it much following the initial review. I really wish I knew why it didn't hold my attention. I know this is petty, but one problem was that I really didn't like the green used in the color design.

As for the "For Sale" sign, my estimation is that it was more the business processes (execution) then the market. I have been in their shoes, I sold my elearning company in 2000, when I saw that I wasn't in a position to capitalize on the existing market and the overall economy was going to slow for a while. But even this overall reasoning was connected to a lot of individual and personal reasons, such as wanting to stay in my home state of West Virginia and the rising costs of health insurance and various other issues.

With the low cost of entry for web-services, I'm not sure what the market value will be for Nuvvo, it is interesting to think about it. I'm sure a potential buyer will closely scrutinize the existing numbers. I wonder if it will stick around? Get re-branded?

However, the buzz (here , here , here ) has me considering if Nuvvo was really leveraging the right part of the learning management process? I have to admit that I think the management of web-based courses should be a lot more intuitive and a lot easier the Blackboard or some of the other software packages. I have extensive experience in designing and developing Learning Management Systems and we are working hard to make these tools easier. But isn't web2.0 and even elearning2.0 about a shift away from structuring a learning event and moving toward supporting the learning experience?

I know despite recent rumors, courses aren't really dead, but they are certainly less common and when they happen they should always be extended through the network. I heard a rumor that they are not allowed to use cooking oil (Trans fat?) in New York City, I guess they are legislating a healthy life style for those who can't manage their own health. I think they should legislate that no course from High School through Graduate School can be allowed to exist without a presence on the network. It would improve the collective intelligence of the world at an incredible rate.

So I think that learning is going to be a constant flow across the network. Not an event, but a series of very small (seconds, minutes, and occasionally hours in length) experiences. You will watch a YouTube video, review someones slides from a presentation, or read a blog. It is happening 24/7. So this is the long tail of learning.



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