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Non-American universities are considering different options for entering the MOOC market, which to date has been dominated by elite U.S. institutions.

The California-based MOOC provider Coursera counts eight foreign institutions among its 33 university partners. Meanwhile, 12 universities in the United Kingdom have launched a new MOOC platform of their own.

The Open University, a distance education institution based in London, recently announced the formation of Futurelearn in partnership with Cardiff and Lancaster Universities; the Universities of Birmingham, Bristol, East Anglia, Exeter, Leeds, Southampton, St Andrews and Warwick; and King’s College, University of London.

Initial marketing material for Futurelearn emphasizes its U.K. identity -- asserting that Britain should be at the forefront of advances in educational technology and stressing that, until now, U.K. universities interested in offering MOOCs have only had the opportunity of working with U.S.-based platforms. However, Futurelearn’s CEO, Simon Nelson, said the company is open to eventually working with universities outside the U.K.

Read "Multinational MOOCs" insidehighered.com/news/2013/01/22/foreign-universities-consider-how-best-enter-mooc-market