Open University and UCL are the most prominent of new universities joining iTunes U - providing free podcasts. But is that the right approach to take? First, there is no way to simply access iTunes U through a browser. You need to have iTunes installed. iTunes is a proprietary software that only works well on Macs, is unreliable on Windows and unavailable on Linux (an important concern with the advent of Linux-based netbooks like the eeePC). Also, contrary to popular belief iTunes isn't that easy to use (I've had to help quite a few people to figure it out. Second, it seems that both OU and UCL are looking at this more as promotional opportunity. When you compare their pages to Stanford or Berkley, there is much less useful information and the top podcasts (and vidcasts) are messages from their administrators about their new web strategy. But perhaps this will change with time. Third, quite a few of the *casts are videos. Wouldn't a kind of YouTube with download facility be better?

There's no doubt that more free information out there is a good thing. But I'm a bit worried about the tie-in to a technology that is less than open in order to drive iPod sales.

iTunes U Expands International Reach Apple Tuesday expanded the international reach of iTunes U,
bringing in 10 universities from the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, and
Australia, all of which are providing content via the iTunes education
portal free of charge.

The initial slate of schools from abroad joining in the service,
which provides free content (educational and otherwise) from and for
the higher education community, includes Open University (UK); University College, London; Trinity College Dublin; the Australian National University; Griffith University (Australia); Swinburne University of Technology (Australia); University of Western Australia; University of Melbourne; University of New South Wales; and University of Otago (New Zealand).

In the United States, Clemson University (South Carolina) and the School of Visual Arts
(New York) have also launched iTunes U portals, bringing the total
number of education institutions on the service to 64. (A complete list
of participating universities and colleges can be found here.)