Abstract
We got to talking about life, the pandemic and everything and became intrigued about the different state of play around open access (OA) for books and journals and how it all might evolve. We had been surprised to hear speculation that OA might slow down even further as a result of Covid-19. However, this was not what we were seeing from our perspectives working with journals and learned society publishers (Alicia), and working with books and small university presses (Frances). So, we decided to collaborate on a short article to explore this and in the process have clarified our own thinking. We share it with Insights readers as an opinion piece.
Highlights
Alicia: So where are we now? Open access (OA) is not a single, coherent global phenomenon, at least at this point
Research funder policies have proved to be a powerful driver of change and OA policies began to coalesce formally at national level in the UK during 20122 and the US during 2013.3 Since 2016, momentum has built steadily in Europe, with a joint statement by Member State Science Ministers supporting a full OA transition by 2020.4 Growth in gold OA had been slowing in journals[5] and changing this was a key driver behind Plan S, which was launched in September 2018
Plan S is the initiative of cOAlition S, a consortium of funders and research agencies co-ordinated by Science Europe and supported by the European Commission and the European Research Council
Summary
Alicia: So where are we now? Open access (OA) is not a single, coherent global phenomenon, at least at this point. Frances: While slower, the push in HSS subjects is from research funders, libraries and research institutions, for a change in business models and for a real reduction in the costs associated
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