Blackboard Inc. announced last week that the company plans to purchase rival course management software company Angel Learning. The deal is set to close by the end of May. The acquisition is being met with criticism by Angel Learning’s customers, many of who chose the company because it was an alternative to Blackboard.

Many of the organisations that were using WebCT before it was bought out by Blackboard back in 2006 were not happy with the eventual result and in time moved to Angel to separate from Blackboard. Those organisations were upset with Blackboard’s high fees and even higher incremental costs for add-ons that were already incorporated into other learning management systems free of charge. Current Angel Learning users are not only anticipating Blackboard to increase license fees for Angel Learning software, but are also sceptical that the company will incorporate any aspects of Angel’s program into Blackboard’s. "We moved from WebCT to Angel so we wouldn't have to deal with Blackboard" stated an Angel administrator on a public forum. "Now, Blackboard is doing it to us again."

As Blackboard continues to acquire its competitors, it lessens companies’ options for their learning management system needs. This has many current Angel users and administrators showing frustration and looking for better alternatives. Some are already considering switching to Moodle, an open-source course management system.

There are several benefits for a company to move to open-source software. These programs offer flexibility due to the fact that the code is available and larger open-source communities such as Moodle provide daily patches on their Web site, enabling administrators to update their system as soon as a fix becomes available.

The negative reaction to the acquisition of Angel could mean great things for Moodle. While there are other commercial options for organisations and administrators who do not want to be forced into a relationship with Blackboard, open-source software seems to be the better alternative, especially when combined with a commercial support package, including turnkey hosting services, by an independent eLearning service provider. The overall solution still ends up costing less, is secure and reliable, and more importantly, not Blackboard!