[GOAL] Fwd: [sparc-oaforum] Digest for sparc-oaforum at arl.org - 2 Messages in 2 Topics
Stevan Harnad
amsciforum at gmail.com
Mon Nov 18 20:37:16 GMT 2013
Forwarding from Paul Royster.
I of course agree with Paul's points of criticism, but I am not quite sure
why he is directing it SPARC rather than Finch!
Perhaps Heather Joseph or Alma Swan can reply on behalf of SPARC.
I don't think SPARC rejects the post-BOAI distinction between Gratis OA
(free online access) and Libre OA (free online access plus certain re-use
rights); nor does SPARC equate OA with Libre OA, or with CC-BY. They just
mention them as desirable, for many cases.
Nor do I think SPARC devalues Green OA or Green OA mandates: It strongly
supports and promotes them.
But on promoting Gold OA subsidies (which SPARC does indeed do), I do agree
with Paul: I have given many reasons why I think that to pay pre-emptively
(i.e., pre-Green) for Gold OA is to pay for "Fool's Gold."
But I certainly believe SPARC has done incomparably more for OA than just
sing "Kumbaya" around a campfire! I think we have Heather Joseph (and Peter
Suber) to thank for the NIH and OSTP Green OA funder mandates, for example,
and many of the US university Green OA mandates.
Stevan Harnad
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Paul Royster <proyster2 at unl.edu>
Date: Sun, Nov 17, 2013
On 2 points of SPARC Policy:
I do not always agree 100% with Dr. Harnad but I think he makes some
important points, especially on 2 issues where SPARC's declared policy
seems more in support of the interests of publishers than of libraries and
researchers. I know the C stands for Coalition, but my ongoing impression
is that the publishers are in the saddle and the others are being ridden.
1. Promoting subsidies and emphasizing funding to buy Gold OA, i.e. to
ransom academic content back from the same folks who have been holding it
hostage for years. Clearly this is a good business plan for publishers. I
don't see how it helps libraries or faculty.
2. Devaluing Green OA: as in Dr. Harnad's restatement of the publishers'
nocturnal #11: "Mobilize the minority OA advocates who are in a great hurry
for re-use rights (CC-BY, text-mining, republication) to support you in
your promotion of Gold OA and demotion and embargoing of Green OA." SPARC
is on record as declaring "From now on 'open-access' means CC-BY or
equivalent"--thus relegating most Green OA to "merely free access." Dr.
Harnad calls these "minority OA advocates," and I cannot tell who is the
majority or minority on this issue, or how it came to be declared SPARC
policy. Perhaps the Budapest (2001) and Berlin (2003) Declarations suggest
this, but I believe that such arguments from the "founders' intentions" are
as suspect here as at the Supreme Court. Dr. Harnad was party to those
assemblies, and he dissents from that definition. Anyway, my point here is
that I strongly believe open access needs to be an inclusive rather than an
exclusive movement. It is insulting to those of us who are actually putting
thousands of works online in accessible repositories in accordance with
publisher's Green OA posting policies, that we should be told these are
something less than open access.
I have made these points directly to the SPARC leadership before, but
apparently to no effect. I am just now encouraged to find that others may
hold them too. It is pretty to think that Open Access is all about holding
hands and singing "Kumbaya" around the campfire, but I feel we are being
sold down the river without much discussion on these key issues.
But perhaps other members of the SPARC-OA Forum feel differently, and I am
sure they will make those views known. As Stan Lee says, 'Nuff said.
Paul Royster, PhD
Scholarly Communications, UNL Libraries
306 Love Library
402 472-3628
proyster at unl.edu
http://digitalcommons.unl.edu
The Journal Publisher Lobby in the UK & Netherlands: Part
I<http://groups.google.com/a/arl.org/group/sparc-oaforum/t/c76bfec3cbafa871>
Stevan Harnad <amsciforum at gmail.com> Nov 16 03:49PM -0500
The UK and the Netherlands -- not coincidentally, the home bases of Big
Publishing for refereed research -- have issued coordinated statements in
support of what cannot be described other than as a publisher's nocturnal
fantasy, in the face of the unstoppable worldwide clamour for Open
Access.
Here are the components of the publishers' nocturnal:
(1) Do whatever it takes to sustain or increase your current revenue
streams.
(2) Your current revenue streams come mainly from subscriptions.
(3) Claim far and wide that everything has to be done to sustain
publishers' subscription revenue, otherwise publishing will be destroyed,
and with it so will peer review, and research itself.
(4) With (3) as your justification, embargo Green OA self-archiving for
as
long as possible, and fight against Green OA self-archiving mandates --
or
make sure allowable embargoes are as long as possible.
(5) Profess a fervent commitment to a transition to full 100% immediate
OA
-- but Gold OA, on your terms, in such a way as to ensure that you
sustain
or increase your current revenue streams.
(6) Offer hybrid Gold OA and promise not to "double-dip." That will
ensure
that your subscription revenues segue seamlessly into Gold OA revenues
while maintaining their current levels.
(7) To hasten the transition, offer even Bigger Big Deals to cover
subscriptions at the national level (as you had always dreamt of doing)
until all payment is safely converted (Gold) OA.
(8) Encourage centralized, collective payment of Gold OA fees too, in
even
Bigger Deals, so Gold OA can continue to be treated as annual
institutional
-- preferably national -- payments rather than as piecewise payments per
individual article.
(9) Persuade governments to mandate, subsidize and prefer Gold OA rather
than mandating Green OA
(10) Make sure Green OA is perceived as delayed OA (because of your
embargoes!), so that only Gold OA can be immediate.
(11) Mobilize the minority OA advocates who are in a great hurry for
re-use
rights (CC-BY, text-mining, republication) to support you in your
promotion
of Gold OA and demotion and embargoing of Green OA.
(12) Cross your fingers and hope that the research community will be
gullible enough to buy it all.
There is, however, a compeletely effective prophylactic against this
publisher fantasy (but it has to be adopted by the research community,
because British and Dutch Ministers are apparently too vulnerable to the
publishing lobby):
(a) Research funders and institutions worldwide adopt an
immediate-deposit
mandate, requiring, as a condition of funding, employment and evaluation,
that all researchers deposit their final, peer-reviewed drafts in their
institutional repositories immediately upon acceptance for publication,
regardless of whether they are published in a subscription journal or a
Gold OA journal -- and regardless of whether access to the deposit is
made
Green OA immediately or only after a publisher embargo.
(b) Do not mandate or designate any extra money to pay for Gold OA: let
that come from the subscription cancellation savings -- if and when Green
OA actually releases institutions to cancel subscriptions.
(c) To tide over research access needs during any embargo, make sure to
implement the institutional repository's automated copy-request Button so
that any user can request -- and any author can provide -- a single copy
for research purposes with just one click each.
------------------------------
Now please read how fully the Dutch government fell for the publishing
lobby's nocturnal fantasy. (Tomorrow you will see the same from the UK.)
Here is a quick google translation of excerpts from Sander Dekker,
Secretary of Education, Culture and Science, Netherlands on "Commitment
to
further developments in open access scientific
publication<
https://t.co/redirect?url=http%3A%2F%2Ft.co%2FBCEXH3YmCd&sig=4f5a508aa12ff21e4d4aea3110c4ac4b87ad91ea&uid=18504532&iid=16196ef5995a423ca9dd4975e16e0a1d&nid=136+1028&t=1
>
"
*Sander Dekker, Secretary of Education, Culture and Science,
Netherlands:*
"A clear choice in favour of Open Access publications; the transition
process provides the necessary speed and shortens the transition period,
thus avoiding unnecessary additional costs... .
"The Green road is the form in which the author publishes an article in a
journal. In addition, the author deposits a version of the article in
Open
Access electronic archive ( repository ). There are both discipline-based
and university-based repositories. The system of paid subscriptions to
journals continues. Publishers often negotiate embargo periods that can
range from several months to several years before an article can be made
OA
through a repository. During the embargo period, only the paid version of
the journal accessible. This constitutes a source of revenue for
publishers. Moreover, there are publisher restrictions on the version of
an
article in the repository. Sometimes this may only be the version that
has
not yet been peer reviewd...
"Netherlands is in a special position because it has a number of major
scientific publishers within its borders. That makes dialogue between
science and the Dutch publishing possible...
"In the UK, a national committee chaired by Dame Janet Finch laid the
foundation for the Open Access policy of the United Kingdom. The report
of
the Commission Finch serves as a solid standard . It contains a thorough
analysis of developments and progress. The Committee notes that due to
the
major changes it is imperative that all players act together and she
advises to achieve by focusing on Open Access journals. Transition
Following this advice, the British government earmarked 10 million pounds
for Open Access. The initial signs indicate that this has not led to an
accelerated transition , but rather a continuation of the transition...
"The transition to the Golden Road: My preference is for Open Access
publishing in journals that make their articles accessible free, the
Golden
road. My aim is to achieve OA within ten years: a full transition to Open
Access Golden Road by 2024. to achieve this, at least 60 percent of the
scientific publications Open Access should be available in about five
years
through the Gold OA journals...
"The real change can only be achieved if we work together at the
international level with National cooperation and coordination equally
important...
"Open Access in the coming years: Dutch universities, KNAW and NWO should
give priority to Open Access Golden road...
"While the publishers have not yet made the transition to Open Access
Golden road I prefer hybrid Open Access, where the institution pays for
publication in a traditional journal...
"For disciplines where the potential for Gold Open Access journals is
still
limited, it is possible to provide OA via the Green road...
"1. Consultation with likeminded countries: I will get in touch with a
number of like-minded countries to promote and acceleration Open Access.
I
refer primarily to the United Kingdom and Germany . This is because there
are a large number of important commercial and academic publishers in the
Netherlands and in these two countries i. In addition, Denmark, Finland,
Belgium and France are leading like-minded countries...
"2. Create conditions under which open access possible: An important
momentum in the transition to Open Access publications when the
scientific
organizations and major scientific publishers agree on subscriptions to
scientific journals . This 'big deals' always apply for some years…."
"3. reports: If the parties concerned are not sufficiently committed , or
developments in insufficient progress , the minister and I imagine that
the
obligation to publish Gold OA to be included in the Law on Higher
Education
in 2016 Open Access and Research Act (WHW )…."
*Sander Dekker, Secretary of Education, Culture and Science, Netherlands*
Alert: Some coordinated action from the Big Publishing Lobby in the UK &
Netherlands<http://groups.google.com/a/arl.org/group/sparc-oaforum/t/ff550c2b21accca8>
Stevan Harnad <amsciforum at gmail.com> Nov 16 02:34PM -0500
Finch II has obviously timed its press release Monday to coincide with a
similar one from the other home-base of Reed-Elsevier, the Netherlands:
Here are some quick Google Translation excerpts from just-released the
Dutch Gold OA Manifesto, clearly timed to coincide with Finch II's
reaffirmation of its Gold preference, for which the Press Release will
appear tomorrow.
I'll comment on Finch II shortly. The publishing Lobby is obviously in
overdrive -- Gold mandates, pre-emptive payment, hybrid Gold, Extended
Big
Deals to sustain current revenue levels during "transition"… ---
But don't worry, there is neither the money nor the imbecility worldwide
to
buy into such a publisher fantasy scheme. It is no coincidence that this
drive is coming from UK & Netherlands where the big publishers and their
lobbyists are based. (in the US, all they have is the FIRST Act.) The
nuclear weapon that will defend against this is…: The Immediate-Deposit
Mandate & Button...
Excerpts from http://t.co/BCEXH3YmCd
Sander Dekker, Secretary of Education, Culture and Science, Netherlands:
"A clear choice in favour of Open Access publications; the transition
process provides the necessary speed and shortens the transition period,
thus avoiding unnecessary additional costs... .
"The Green road is the form in which the author publishes an article in a
journal. In addition, the author deposits a version of the article in
Open
Access electronic archive ( repository ). There are both discipline-based
and university-based repositories. The system of paid subscriptions to
journals continues. Publishers often negotiate embargo periods that can
range from several months to several years before an article can be made
OA through a repository. During the embargo period, only the paid version
of the journal accessible. This constitutes a source of revenue for
publishers. Moreover, there are publisher restrictions on the version of
an
article in the repository. Sometimes this may only be the version that
has
not yet been peer reviewd...
"Netherlands is in a special position because it has a number of major
scientific publishers within its borders. That makes dialogue between
science and the Dutch publishing possible...
"In the UK, a national committee chaired by Dame Janet Finch laid the
foundation for the Open Access policy of the United Kingdom. The report
of
the Commission Finch serves as a solid standard . It contains a thorough
analysis of developments and progress. The Committee notes that due to
the
major changes it is imperative that all players act together and she
advises to achieve by focusing on Open Access journals. Transition
Following this advice, the British government earmarked 10 million pounds
for Open Access. The initial signs indicate that this has not led to an
accelerated transition , but rather a continuation of the transition...
"The transition to the Golden Road: My preference is for Open Access
publishing in journals that make their articles accessible free, the
Golden road. My aim is to achieve OA within ten years: a full transition
to
Open Access Golden Road by 2024. to achieve this, at least 60 percent of
the scientific publications Open Access should be available in about five
years through the Gold OA journals...
"The real change can only be achieved if we work together at the
international level with National cooperation and coordination equally
important...
"Open Access in the coming years: Dutch universities, KNAW and NWO should
give priority to Open Access Golden road...
"While the publishers have not yet made the transition to Open Access
Golden road I prefer hybrid Open Access, where the institution pays for
publication in a traditional journal...
"For disciplines where the potential for Gold Open Access journals is
still
limited, it is possible to provide OA via the Green road...
"1. Consultation with likeminded countries: I will get in touch with a
number of like-minded countries to promote and acceleration Open Access.
I
refer primarily to the United Kingdom and Germany . This is because there
are a large number of important commercial and academic publishers in the
Netherlands and in these two countries i. In addition, Denmark, Finland,
Belgium and France are leading like-minded countries...
"2. Create conditions under which open access possible: An important
momentum in the transition to Open Access publications when the
scientific
organizations and major scientific publishers agree on subscriptions to
scientific journals . This 'big deals' always apply for some years…."
"3. reports: If the parties concerned are not sufficiently committed , or
developments in insufficient progress , the minister and I imagine that
the
obligation to publish Gold OA to be included in the Law on Higher
Education in 2016 Open Access and Research Act (WHW )…."
Sander Dekker, Secretary of Education, Culture and Science, Netherlands
-
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mailman.ecs.soton.ac.uk/pipermail/goal/attachments/20131118/20b73f30/attachment-0001.html
More information about the GOAL
mailing list