Similarly, many individuals invest their time and money to participate in professional development opportunities. Distance learning can minimize costs, both financial and human, to the learner by allowing them to participate in learning events from their work or home. Key Issues and Challenges Ownership, Copyright. Intellectual property remains a key issue as distance learning programs become better established. It is important to clarify who has what rights to both the content and the learning environment in web-based course development.
Questions related to ownership also surface when outsourcing to a contractor.
Closely related to this is the issue of copyright. Organizations embarking on the distance education journey need to determine who is responsible for the development and implementation of copyright policies, who will instruct online facilitators as to what is permissible in the online environment, and who will obtain permission for course materials. Evaluation is another key challenge in the distance learning environment. In order to effectively measure ROI, a cost-benefit analysis should be undertaken. Costs identified should include not only the money paid out for design, development, technology, etc., but also the marginal, or hidden, costs, such as the often undocumented overhead of the organization.