Economics Committee Working Group

Mailing List: golc-econ@mit.edu

Members

• Phil Long
• Christian Guetl
• David Boehringer
• Kemi Jona
• Jud Harward

To do list

• cost structures: identify cost factors in a total cost of ownership. Quantify the total cost of ownership
• detect costumer groups/entities
• List dissemination activities
• Develop business model
• Define categories/possibilities of usage conditions
• Define parameters for accounting: What can be charged? What can be logged? What chargeable/accountable triggers are there?
• Describe (possibilities of) accounting infrastructure
• Define service level agreements
• Define membership benefits
• Detect cost factors of the central organisation and the central technical infrastructure
• Define possibilities for membership fees and contributions (are there differences between core members and community members?)

Deliverables Timeline

• Feb. 24, 2010 - Draft of Terms of Reference for EC review

Terms of Reference

The Global Online Laboratory Consortium (GOLC)

Economics & Finance Committee Terms of Reference

DRAFT

Goal
The goal of the economics and finance committee is to establish a transparent and open mechanism that studies and identifies the elements that are associated with the total effort associated with creating and running online laboratories. A significant part of the work of this committee is to support and coordinate research into the economics of online laboratory environments for learning. A comparable effort is to identify sustainable mechanisms of exchange that can sustain and grow the development of online laboratories.

Mission
The Econ & Finance Committee will seek to make clearly known
1. The alternative mechanisms by which different parts of the creation, implementation, maintenance/delivery, support, and replacement of online laboratories can be fairly accounted for
2. Describe options whereby members of the consortium might to create an equitable basis of exchange for their use
3. Develop a business model for the sustainable future of GOLC including the articulation of the value associated with membership in it

Organisation
The Econ & Finance Committee will be formed with a membership determined by the GOLC Executive Committee and will accept responsibility for completing tasks allocated to it by the Executive Committee. Sub-tasks may be allocated to groups within the Econ & Finance Committee but at the time of allocation a member within the Econ & Finance Committee will be identified to manage the sub-task. Decisions made by the Econ & Finance Committee on all matters will be carried out with a majority consensus of all members of the Committee. Two immediate subtasks are associated with the membership of this committee are associated with Membership, and Elements of a Cost Accounting for Online Laboratories.

Where there are expressions of interest from other organisations who seek partnership with the GOLC for the purposes of providing value-added derivative works up to and including establishing commercial ventures for the purposes of leveraging member experiments to paying customers, a task force will be formed in conjunction with the Executive Committee to consider such options.

Working Principles
The work of the Economics and Finance Committee will be guided by transparency and fairness in
1. Developing membership options and the benefits that go might go with them
2. The encouragement of an open exchange of information relating to the real costs of remote laboratory.
3. An open mind to the possibilities collaboration with third parties as we explore long-term sustainable mechanisms for online laboratoriesl

Villach Meeting - 24-June-2010

GOLC Economics Subcommittee
From Sydney:
• determine cost structures: identify cost factors in a total cost of ownership.
• Identify costumer groups/entities
• List dissemination activities
• Develop business model
• Define categories/possibilities of usage conditions
• Define parameters for accounting: What can be charged? What can be logged? What chargeable/accountable triggers are there?
• Describe (possibilities of) accounting infrastructure
• Define service level agreements
• Define membership benefits
• Detect cost factors of the central organisation and the central technical infrastructure
• Define possibilities for membership fees and contributions (are there differences between core members and community members

For Villach -
1. Membership categories & consequent benefits
What does one ‘get’ for becoming a ‘member’? (for each of the member categoris)
Information
Core vs. Community?
Activities valuable to members
2. Cost structures
Central organization (provider)
Infrastructure costs
Consumables
3. Data Gathering