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Tikhon Jelvis
The United States has embargoes against Iran, Cuba, Sudan and Syria. (As well as some other countries like North Korea and Burma; see: United States embargoes. I suspect internet access from North Korea... is not an issue.)
These countries have sanctions against them because the United States considers them "State Sponsors of Terrorism". Since terrorism is the new communism, we can't have any of that!
Companies that allow trade with these countries can be subject to significant fines. RBS recently settles a suit about violating these sanctions for $100 million: RBS to Pay $100 Million to Settle U.S. Sanctions Probe. These are serious restrictions and violating them would put a company at serious risk. Since Coursera is a US company subject to US law, they have to at least attempt to enforce these sanctions.
As an aside, students from these countries have problems even if they're physically present in the US. I know of an Iranian graduate student at Berkeley who was barred from using a supercomputer at the LBNL because of his Iranian citizenship.
All that said, a company can petition the state department for an exception. And, in fact, edX has done exactly this:
I understand that edX's license allows them to provide courses but not certificates of completion. The actual knowledge is obviously the most important part, but this is clearly a compromise.
Dealing with the State Department obviously requires quite a lot of investment and effort on the part of each MOOC company. I have no doubt that the process in incredibly complicated involving soul-crushing amounts of bureaucracy--and before you have a license, you can't legally export to any of the embargoed countries. It's certainly understandable that Coursera has not gone through the process at this time, although I really hope it will in the near future.
In fact, Coursera has posted a handy FAQ about th issue: Update on Course Accessibility for Students in Cuba, Iran, Sudan, and Syria. They claim they are also working with the state department to get an exception:
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The United States has embargoes against Iran, Cuba, Sudan and Syria. (As well as some other countries like North Korea and Burma; see: United States embargoes. I suspect internet access from North Korea... is not an issue.)
These countries have sanctions against them because the United States considers them "State Sponsors of Terrorism". Since terrorism is the new communism, we can't have any of that!
Companies that allow trade with these countries can be subject to significant fines. RBS recently settles a suit about violating these sanctions for $100 million: RBS to Pay $100 Million to Settle U.S. Sanctions Probe. These are serious restrictions and violating them would put a company at serious risk. Since Coursera is a US company subject to US law, they have to at least attempt to enforce these sanctions.
As an aside, students from these countries have problems even if they're physically present in the US. I know of an Iranian graduate student at Berkeley who was barred from using a supercomputer at the LBNL because of his Iranian citizenship.
All that said, a company can petition the state department for an exception. And, in fact, edX has done exactly this:
Tena Herlihy, edX’s general counsel, said the company has since last May worked with the U.S. State Department and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, and has so far applied for and received company-specific licenses for its MOOCs to enroll students in Cuba and Iran (a third license, for Sudan, is still in the works).
(From Inside Higher Ed: State Dept. blocks access to MOOCs in countries with economic sanctions.)I understand that edX's license allows them to provide courses but not certificates of completion. The actual knowledge is obviously the most important part, but this is clearly a compromise.
Dealing with the State Department obviously requires quite a lot of investment and effort on the part of each MOOC company. I have no doubt that the process in incredibly complicated involving soul-crushing amounts of bureaucracy--and before you have a license, you can't legally export to any of the embargoed countries. It's certainly understandable that Coursera has not gone through the process at this time, although I really hope it will in the near future.
In fact, Coursera has posted a handy FAQ about th issue: Update on Course Accessibility for Students in Cuba, Iran, Sudan, and Syria. They claim they are also working with the state department to get an exception:
Coursera is working very closely with the U.S. Department of State and Office of Foreign Assets Control to secure permissions to reinstate site access for students in sanctioned countries. The Department of State and Coursera are aligned in our goals and we are working tirelessly to ensure that blockage is not permanent.
Sounds promising.See Questions On Quora
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