One theory some skeptics have is that the movement towards MOOCs/etc. isn't really about toppling formal education overall, but about toppling non-elite formal

One theory some skeptics have is that the movement towards MOOCs/etc. isn't really about toppling formal education overall, but about toppling non-elite formal education, which would cement the dominance of a handful of top institutions. In that view, MOOCs become a kind of franchising for MIT/Stanford/Harvard, where they offer a lower-tier product that mainly aims at competitors, but doesn't really threaten their own top-tier product. If anything it might provide some advertising for the "real" university, by increasing name-recognition of their faculty.