In line with the UK government's commitment to free and open access to publicly-funded research, Universities and Science Minister David Willetts recently announced a £10 million cash injection to the top 30 UK research-intensive institutions, to aid the transition to open access and compliance with the new Research Council UK Open Access Policy.
As the pioneer of open access publishing with over 300 journals across STM, BioMed Central, ChemistryCentral and Springer through SpringerOpen and Springer Open Choice, have welcomed the steps that the government and RCUK are taking to support open access and increase the visibility of the UK’s research output.
The new RCUK OA policy, launched on the July 16, 2012, states that all peer-reviewed published research articles and conference proceedings funded by RCUK from April1, 2013, must be open access (although researchers are encouraged to begin OA publishing as soon as possible). While RCUK will still support a mixed approach to open access via ‘green’ and 'gold' OA routes, the policy aims to make it simpler for UK institutions and researchers to publish in open access journals, including paying for Article Processing Charges (APCs) through block grants to UK Higher Education institutions, approved independent research organizations, and Research Council Institutes. This is in line with the recommendations of the Finch report on open access, published in June 2012.
The Finch Report, together with this additional £10 million government funding announcement, signals significant developments for the open access movement in the UK, further ensuring that the results of UK research are made openly available for all.
Open access publisher BioMed Central, ChemistryCentral, SpringerOpen and Springer Open Choice are working closely with these UK institutions to set up Membership accounts to help manage publication visibility and provide discounts that will further extend the benefits of this extra funding.
