In a knowledge economy, the vast amount of research and scholarly information produced by UK higher education (HE) is incredibly important. ‘The full value of this knowledge can only be realised when it is effectively disseminated,’ argues Professor John Houghton of Australia’s Centre for Strategic Economic Studies, Victoria University. Guest writer Sally Whittle talks to Houghton to discuss a new report, co-authored by Professor Charles Oppenheim of Loughborough University and other colleagues.
On 27 January 2008, JISC published a report by Houghton et al. titled Economic Implications of Alternative Scholarly Publishing Models....The authors’ conclusions is that the UK’s HE sector should embrace Open Access (OA) publishing, which currently accounts for less than 20% of academic publishing in the UK.
Discussion of alternative academic publishing models has been almost exclusively focused on the cost, but Houghton argues that this is missing the point.‘ ...
Given how much money the UK spends on research – more than £6bn a year in HE alone – Houghton believes it is only sensible to know what returns are being generated and how they might be increased. ‘We talk a lot about what this costs versus what that costs but, as an economist, it is much more interesting to think about what something is worth, cost-effectiveness or value for money,’ says Houghton.
‘The aim is to stimulate debate about whether Open Access is a more cost-effective approach. You cannot do that without looking at benefits as well as costs.’ ...
The key finding is that the benefits of more Open Access – however it is achieved – outweigh the costs.‘
It’s pretty clear,’ says Houghton. ‘If we look at Open Access publishing with producer side payments and an institutional Open Access archive or repository, both show benefits higher than the costs. That’s an important message.’
According to the new research, OA publishing for all UK HE journal articles in 2007 would have cost around £150m, of which £75m would have been authors’ fees. This would have represented a saving to the HE sector of £80m, based on the previous toll access model.
Based on the research, Houghton et al. predict that OA publishing for journal articles could potentially bring system savings of £210m per annum in the UK, of which £165m would accrue within the HE sphere. With the costs of OA publishing estimated at £170m for 2009, there are considerable savings to be achieved.
The argument for Open Access is strengthened by the possible increase in returns to R&D that might arise from enhanced access. Houghton found that with a 20% return on publicly funded R&D for the major categories of research expenditure in the UK in 2006, a 5% increase in accessibility and efficiency would have been worth £124 million in increased returns to HE R&D, with around £33m in increased returns for the research councils’ competitive grant-funded R&D.
Posting pre-print may increase the benefit of research, for delaying publication of knowledge through embargoes can have a serious impact on the returns from R&D. Houghton says that, ‘delays or embargoes can lose a lot of money over 20 years – perhaps £120m in reduced returns to higher education R&D.’ ...
The report makes several recommendations....Firstly, the most serious barrier to OA publishing in the UK today is a lack of information and knowledge. Appointing an advocate to help increase awareness of its benefits to key stakeholders is vital, with funders becoming more open to making funds available for producer-side payments.
Secondly, research assessment exercises (RAEs) need to consider OA publishing models....
Finally, Houghton et al. recommend focusing on quick ways of reducing the costs associated with scholarly publishing, with many specific actions outlined. These include removing the uncertainties and complexities that surround standard licensing conditions and permissions for use....
PS: See our post on Houghton's latest study and all our past posts on his research on the economic impact of OA.
Posted by
Peter Suber at 3/07/2009 03:19:00 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.
