In 2012-2013, the massive open online course (MOOC) approach has been accepted by universities around the world, and outsourcing companies have been launched to provide the infrastructure for it. Current press and blog coverage of the MOOC trend is examined and the range of reactions to it, most of them enthusiastic. MOOCs vary in their massiveness and openness, and in the extent to which they are courses; and a wide range of MOOCs is emerging under different names. These include xMOOCs, in which course content is defined by the course designers, and cMOOCs featuring information generated by the students. The origins of the MOOC are examined, and its implications for the educational institutions that have specialized in distance education previously.