SPARC has publicly released its comment in support of the NIH plan. Excerpt: 'SPARC supports both the concept and implementation plan outlined in the NIH notice. The proposal successfully balances the taxpayer's right of access to NIH research with the need to preserve the quality-certification process traditionally organized by journal publishers. We are confident that it adequately shields the subscription revenue supporting publication of most journals. The six-month embargo and the limited scope of content to be included in PubMed Central (PMC) will not result in PMC becoming a substitute for journal subscriptions. We note, however, that as a consequence the plan does not alleviate the growing strain placed on libraries by high and rising scientific and medical journal prices. Nor does it address the long-term impact on scientific communication of already-dwindling journal subscription bases and other challenges facing scientific societies in the era of the Internet. We also observe that U.S. taxpayer needs for immediate access to NIH funded research are compromised by the proposed six-month delay in access following first publication. Any extension of the delay beyond six months would be excessive and not in the interest of taxpayers.'
Posted by
Peter Suber at 11/15/2004 11:49:00 PM.
The open access movement:
Putting peer-reviewed scientific and scholarly literature
on the internet. Making it available free of charge and
free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.
Removing the barriers to serious research.
I recommend the OA tracking project (OATP) as the best way to stay on top of new OA developments. You can read the OATP feed on a blog-like web page or subscribe to it by RSS, email, or Twitter. You can also help build the feed by tagging new developments you encounter.
