...In recommending that ACRL convey its support of the SCOAP3 effort to the organizers and to its own members, ACRL's Scholarly Communication Committee consulted with a range of member groups. ACRL's University Library Section lent support, noting, "We believe that it is imperative that universities lead the way to develop open access initiatives that embrace access and the need for peer review." ACRL?s Science and Technology Section (STS), one of the library groups most involved with scientific publishing, commented:
STS recognizes the importance of encouraging new models that provide greater open access to the journal literature. The HEP community is already very open to new models of publishing, making it a good community to experiment with the SCOAP3 plan. Moreover, HEP is at risk of losing its core, yet low-use journals due to increased cancellations, and this impacts the peer-review process it still depends upon for tenure, funding decisions, etc. SCOAP3 seems to provide an innovative and promising approach to the peer review issue while maintaining access for all. As one library colleague noted, ?The SCOAP3 Model (or something like it) is the only way that I see for [my institution] to keep access to the official published copies of the HEP journals.? ....
SCOAP3 is unique in its explicit goals to unite researchers and libraries and to partner with publishers so that aggregated financial contributions will support HEP publishing, make the results available at no cost to any reader any where, and serve as a potential model to other disciplines.
Therefore ACRL encourages its members to consider joining the SCOAP3 effort when appropriate....
...More details are in a podcast interview with John Ober and Kim Douglas, current and incoming co-chairs of ACRL's Scholarly Communications Committee.
Posted by
Peter Suber at 6/19/2008 10:56:00 AM.
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.
