Distance learners determine the time and place for their studies--those engaged in self-paced study may also choose the rate at which they proceed through their courses. However, it is difficult to incorporate purposeful learner-learner interaction into self-paced study. A multiple-case study included three open universities with in-house design and development of self-paced undergraduate courses. Data was gathered from in-depth interviews with course developers (academics and learning/teaching specialists), self-paced course materials, and institutional documents. This article reports on the ways in which these course designers and developers are making use of Web 2.0 and network-based approaches to encourage open, social forms of learner-learner interaction in self-paced courses.