Blackboard had the advantage of being one of the first commercialised learning management systems in the current incarnation. They were able to secure a large

Blackboard had the advantage of being one of the first commercialised learning management systems in the current incarnation. They were able to secure a large part of the market by being first, and then by acquiring others (WebCT/Angel/Prometheus etc - see http://www.quora.com/How-many-acquisitions-has-BlackBoard-made http://www.quora.com/How-many-acquisitions-has-BlackBoard-ma... for a more detailed list). Their really controversial patent ('138 - the one that pretty much patented anything that resembled a group of students accessing materials online), was overturned. Although they have a number of technology patents, and are litigious, it isn't stopping competition. There are quite a few out there. (Full disclosure, I'm one of the founders at http://www.lexim.com.au http://www.lexim.com.au - one of these companies).