UK regering voor méér Open Access

De Engelse regering is voor meer Open Access.

David Willetts, de engelse minister van wetenschap en universiteiten, hield een pleidooi voor meer Open Access. Hij zegt dat zijn regering daadoor zelfs 28 miljoen pond zal besparen.

Stephen Curry, natuurkundige, maakte een analyse van die toespraak.
Een van de belangrijkste uitspraken van de minister:
“Our starting point is very simple. The Coalition is committed to the principle of public access to publicly-funded research results. That is where both technology and contemporary culture are taking us. It is how we can maximise the value and impact generated by our excellent research base. As taxpayers put their money towards intellectual enquiry, they cannot be barred from then accessing it. They should not be kept outside with their noses pressed to the window – whilst, inside, the academic community produces research in an exclusive space. The Government believes that published research material which has been publicly financed should be publicly accessible – and that principle goes well beyond the academic community.“
Kortom: wat met publieksgeld betaald is moet gratis door het publiek geraadpleegd kunnen worden.

Uit een rapport van'The UK Open Access Group':

"The UK public sector already saves £28.6 million by using open access. The reports make it clear that both the public sector and the voluntary sector would see further direct and indirect benefits from increased access to UK higher education research publications."

"The UK public sector spends £135 million a year, made up of subscriptions and time spent trying to find articles, accessing the journal papers it needs to perform effectively. Each extra 5% of journal papers accessed via open access on the web would save the public purse £1.7 million, even if no subscription fees were to be saved."

Oprichter van Wikipedia,
Jimmy Wales,  waarschijnlijk betrokken bij opzetten van de  UK Open Access volgens de Guardian.