New work funded by the UK’s Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) and the Wellcome Trust, on behalf of the Open Access Implementation Group (OAIG), will look at how they can help universities to manage the charges efficiently for open access (OA) publishing. It will also examine what role an intermediary might play in making the process work smoothly.
The recent Finch Report said that universities would have to be increasingly efficient in the way they paid for OA publishing in the form of article processing charges (APCs). The new study will build on the OAIG’s earlier findings. Research by JISC Collections on behalf of the OAIG had shown that many hybrid journal publishers, research institutions and funders had not yet developed efficient back office systems to manage OA payments. Also, OAIG members and publishers had together highlighted the potential role for suitable intermediaries in providing support and services. These intermediaries could help avoid ‘doubling up’ of back-office systems and make it easier to reconcile data for both publishers and funders.
It is envisaged that an intermediary role might help publishers, funders and research organisations by reducing transaction costs, speeding up payment of APCs and ensuring an efficient and competitive market in Gold OA.
