Innovation and its management are and probably will remain primarily an institutional matter. But as distance education becomes increasingly international, innovation will increasingly raise international issues.

There are two sides to international innovation. Internationalization can be seen as a problem when it results in the imposition of inappropriate delivery methods. But it can be seen as a boon when it helps to improve distance education practices in both providing and receiving agencies.

These two sides of the issue point to the need for solid research in distance education on a national, regional, and international basis. The two development-oriented distance education agencies, Commonwealth of Learning (COL) and Consortium international francophone de formation...distance (CIFFAD), are assisting with such research, as is, for example, the International Foundation for Research in Open Learning (IRFOL).