"For example, [Harvard Business School Publishing's] e-learning division has offered comprehensive sets of personalized, multimedia courses like Harvard ManageMentor, which is on a million corporate desktops," Crane writes in an e-mail message.

Although much of the school's efforts have been geared toward the corporate market, Crane says HBS' courses for incoming students--in areas such as basic accounting and finance--are also provided online.

The web is such a highly desirable market for courses because of the

potential profits it promises.

According to a Goldman Sachs report, online distance learning is expected to generate $1.1 billion in annual tuition revenue from 500,000 students by 2002.

But Harvard has been reluctant in the past to take part in alliances with other universities to provide distance learning for several reasons.

Last spring, Harvard spokesperson Joe Wrinn told The Crimson that from an institutional perspective, Harvard was unprepared to get into the e-learning market.