iTunes U hits Australia

If you're a student at ANU, Griffith University, Swinburne University, University of Melbourne, University of NSW, University of WA or Otago University you're in luck, because Apple, in cooperation with your Uni, just launched iTunes U. iTunes U lets Universities make their audio, video and even written content available to iTunes users.

iTunes U works exactly the same way as iTunes, except that the content is free and accessible to the students, and the public too. To use iTunes U students log on to the iTunes store, select the lectures they are interested in and download the content to iTunes. iPod users can sync the content to their iPod, but other media players users can also access the content, as files are available in either AAC or MP3 (both DRM-free). iTunes U, like the iTunes store, also supports H264 video and PDF files too.

Unlike podcasts, iTunes U content can't be downloaded automatically, however there is a 'Get All' button on most pages. Still, students who use this system will need to continually check iTunes U for content updates.

iTunes U is available to any higher-education institution in the US, Canada, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and the UK, and administrators can register interest here. According to Apple, using iTunes U isn't 'IT-intensive' and once a site is established uploading and maintaining content is easy. Apple even provide a full user guide that provides help with the system. As Apple actually host the data on iTunes U, they cap the individual file size at 500MB.

Site administrators also get weekly spreadsheet reports from Apple on site usage and content popularity.

iTunes U is a smart product extension for Apple, and one that capitalises on the immense success of the iPod. When I went to Uni getting and managing digital content was painful - with iTunes U and iPod integration another headache of student life is about to be a thing of the past.