Edtech platforms play an increasing role in higher education, affecting academic labour, complicating academic ownership of teaching materials, and impacting educators’ academic freedoms. A recent report by Education International highlighted the implications of edtech platforms on the intellectual property rights and academic freedoms of higher education personnel and researchers.
This report finds that the increasing digitalisation and platformisation of higher-ed is resulting in many technical, legal and financial effects on academic IP and freedom, which are further complicated by different governance and copyright regimes across national borders and institutions. Because there are no sector wide standards or rules, and there is minimal guidance for institutions on licensing or procurement, the authors argue that there is an increased risk of academic IP being exploited and academic freedoms being constrained, as edtech becomes a greater part of higher education.
The report from Education International is available here: https://www.ei-ie.org/en/item/28484:behind-the-platforms-safeguarding-intellectual-property-rights-and-academic-freedom-in-higher-education
