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Why Google will *never* buy Blackboard

December 6th, 2010 Leave a comment Go to comments

I recently read a blog post about why Google should buy Blackboard (instead of paying $6 billion for Groupon). Buying Blackboard seems like a really bad idea to me, and here’s why: Google tends to buy companies with (1) GREAT software and (2) a large and growing user base. The “great software” requirement probably explains why Google hasn’t made a bid for Blackboard. In fact, the *only* reason for anyone to buy Blackboard is for the user base. But these are not happy users, so really you are just buying a (very expensive) problem.

Some folks may want a Google to buy Blackboard because they think that somehow being owned by Google will make everything easy (like Google Docs) and cost nothing (like Gmail). But think about it: If Google bought Bb they would then have the nightmarish task of changing/improving *almost everything* about the software while trying to keep existing customers happy. Doesn’t exactly sound like “low-hanging fruit” that someone should quickly snatch up, does it?

If you want to see an example of great GDocs-LMS integration, have a look at Canvas, by a company called Instructure. It’s a great, new LMS that integrates tightly with Google Docs and other great apps (like DimDim for videoconferencing). Google could buy Instructure instead, make it totally free and open, and then pull customers away from Bb. Five years later you’ll have the same result (lots of folks switched over to Google’s LMS), without the nightmare transition for Google… and without spending $1.5 billion. And we’ll all live happily ever after (as long as you don’t mind a few Google Ads for Viagra during your Human Anatomy course). ;-)

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  • Andy Duckworth

    At my institution we have been exploring the Canvas LMS and really like its ability to integrate with other tools like Google Docs and DimDim. My favorite feature so far is the ability for students to create groups that can persist outside of a specific class so their community building efforts are terminated at the end of the quarter/semester.

  • Pingback: Throwing it all away: Why every college alumni association should care about their school’s LMS | Tom's Two Cents

  • http://tomcaswell.com tom4cam

    That’s great to hear your institution is exploring Canvas. I agree that it’s important to allow learning and groups to persist beyond the course/semester/quarter. Your comment spurred another short blog post. Thanks!

    New post: Throwing it all away: Why every college alumni association should care about their school’s LMS
    http://tomcaswell.com/2010/12/11/throwing-it-all-away-why-every-college-alumni-association-should-care-about-their-schools-lms/

  • Scott Dennis

    That is a very attractive feature Andy. I am remembering the required group work I did as a student and also the unofficial small groups I was a part of that carpooled, chose to take courses together, etc. In both, we tended to use Google tools and other free resources to replace what we didn’t get from the institution’s official LMS, if it was even in use. I do still occasionally go back and look at the contents of those groups now, which were often very valuable to me as we progressed from course to course, semester to semester through the program.

    I’m looking forward to seeing the Canvas demo to the advisory group. I definitely like what I’ve seen so far. My favorite thing about Canvas is that it looks to have an affinity for integrating with oncampus and outside systems equally well – the registration system and Google docs, for example.