Background: The EU is considering adopting a "fifth freedom", the free movement of knowledge within the EU's internal market. (The first four freedoms are the free movement of goods, services, capital, and labor.) There's been discussion over what exactly that would mean, including potential implications for OA.
[Vision statement:] By 2020, all actors fully benefit from the “Fifth Freedom” across the [European Research Area]: free circulation of researchers, knowledge and technology. ...
The ERA provides for open circulation of knowledge across national borders. ...
Actors are able to access, manage and share knowledge (including via open access) across the ERA using interoperable high performance information systems. ...
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.
