[GOAL] RCUK policy: relationship between green and CC-BY-NC

[Dan Stowell]

Dear all,

We're having some discussion in our research group here about the RCUK 
policy, and there's a point of interpretation, which I wonder if you've 
resolved yourselves.

The question is whether RCUK policy on green OA implies a specific 
licence, and in particular whether it implies CC-BY-NC. I don't really 
want to discuss what the policy *should* be, if you don't mind - just 
trying to understand what the policy *is*.

Linked from the RCUK's main outputs page
<http://www.rcuk.ac.uk/research/Pages/outputs.aspx>
are two documents. One is the main policy document
<http://www.rcuk.ac.uk/documents/documents/RCUK%20_Policy_on_Access_to_Research_Outputs.pdf>
- it clearly says (sec 4.1) that gold must be CC-BY, while for green 
(sec 4.2) it says "the journal must allow deposit [...] in other 
repositories, without restrictions on non-commercial re-use and within a 
defined period." So it seems clear to me that that is not a positive 
requirement for a specific licence, but a negative requirement that we 
cannot do green OA that bans commercial use. The guidance document 
linked just below it does not narrow down green any further.

However, linked from *the same page* is a presentation
<http://www.rcuk.ac.uk/documents/documents/Thorley_RCUK_November2012.pdf) which 
very clearly (slide 10) says "Green (at least post print) with a maximum 
embargo period of 6(12) months, and CC-BY-NC".

Both of these cannot be true, or else I'm misinterpreting something. 
Does the Thorley presentation contain a mistaken assertion, or a missing 
context?

Thanks
Dan


-- 
Dan Stowell
Postdoctoral Research Assistant
Centre for Digital Music
Queen Mary, University of London
Mile End Road, London E1 4NS
http://www.elec.qmul.ac.uk/digitalmusic/people/dans.htm
http://www.mcld.co.uk/