Starting in the Fall 2021 semester, you will be required to choose between MS Teams and Zoom for synchronous online course delivery. It will no longer be possible to use Adobe Connect at Contact North.

This change will also reduce the number of technologies students are expected to use, one of the recurring concerns by our students. Of course, we strongly recommend that you also use a Virtual Campus space (Brightspace), in parallel with MS Teams or Zoom, to share documents, contents, exams, etc.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Contact North’s services were implemented to deliver courses using Adobe Connect. During this period, the University of Ottawa has been strengthening its service offering in terms of videoconferencing tools that allow you to be online with your students synchronously. Indeed, you can now easily create an MS Teams Classroom using our Maestro portal and, since September 2020, the University has made available a Zoom license for all professors and teaching assistants.

As a result, we’ve seen a significant drop in Adobe Connect usage for the current semester, from peaks of over 3,000 students connected at the same time, to a current maximum of 750. In addition, Adobe Connect licensing costs have become prohibitive, so we have made the decision not to renew the Adobe Connect licenses managed by Contact North that expire at the end of March 2021.

We have arranged for Contact North to continue to host the University of Ottawa’s classes to the end of August 2021 through their own Adobe Connect licensing. As a result of this arrangement, you will be able to complete the Winter 2021 semester using Adobe Connect and still have the option of using Adobe Connect for the Spring/Summer term.

 
If you have any questions regarding using MS Teams or Zoom, contact the TLSS at saea-tlss@uOttawa.ca.

For support with Adobe Connect do not hesitate to contact Contact North technical support, Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. ET at 1-888-850-4628 or send an email to support@contactnorth.ca.