Independent Thinking on Publishing's Future
Introduction Open access has made millions of research articles free to read, but free to read is not the same as open. Author fees, restrictive licences, embargoes and uneven infrastructure still decide who can publish, reuse and build on research. Key points Open access sounds like a utopian dream, neatly encapsulated in two words. Free … Read more
Introduction Few would ask: What is the Nelson Memo of 2022? In August 2022, a policy directive quietly issued by the White House began rippling through the research and academic communities. Known as the Nelson Memo, this policy is far from bureaucratic filler. It’s a landmark shift in the U.S. government’s stance on open science, … Read more
Introduction The world of scholarly publishing is brimming with buzzwords that often sound interchangeable. “Open access” and “open science” are two of the most prominent—and most misunderstood—terms in this lexicon. At first glance, they may seem to describe the same noble ideal: a more transparent, democratic system for disseminating research. But scratch the surface, and … Read more
Introduction The best open access policies are the ones that deliver immediate access without shifting the cost onto authors, and only a few manage both. This article compares the main approaches, from Plan S and the US zero-embargo rules to Latin America’s Diamond model and India’s national subscription, and checks how each is working in … Read more
Introduction Plan S set out in 2018 to make publicly funded research free to read the moment it is published. Eight years on, it has changed how publishers price and license research, but cOAlition S is now rethinking how it gets there. This article looks at where Plan S came from, what it requires, what … Read more