Open access monographs: policy versus practicality
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The document discusses the context and requirements of open access monographs, emphasizing policy fragmentation among publishers and detailing UKRI's open access policy effective January 1, 2024. Key policy requirements include immediate availability of the final version or accepted manuscript for download within specified time frames and licensing under Creative Commons. It also highlights the current publishing landscape's challenges, including the rise of new funding models and the need for sustainable practices in academic publishing.
Open access monographs: policy versus practicality
- 1. Isabel O’Kelly Bibliographical services’ manager Rebecca Clarke Open Research Librarian Open Access Monographs: Policy versus Practicality
- 2. Open access Monographs: Context Open Access isn’t new for monograph publishing. Range of options for making academic books and chapters open access. Publishers’ open access/self-archiving policies fragmented.
- 3. UKRI’s Open Access Policy Monographs In scope monographs, book chapters and edited collections published on or after 1 January 2024. Policy requirements 1. The final Version of Record or the Author’s Accepted Manuscript must be free to view and download via an online publication platform, publishers’ website, or institutional or subject repository within a maximum of 12 months of publication. 2. The open access version has a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) Licence or other licence permitted by UKRI and allows the reader to search for and reuse content, subject to proper attribution. 3. The open access version should include, where possible, any images, illustrations, tables and other supporting content. 4. Where an Author’s Accepted Manuscript is deposited, it should be clear that this is not the final published version and this should have a cc license attached.
- 4. REF 2029 Consultation Proposed Policy Requirements 1. If not published as immediately open access, in-scope longform publications must be made available to read, download and search no longer than 24 months after the date of publication. 2. Should be the version of record or the author’s accepted manuscript. 3. Available on a publisher website, repository, or other appropriate platform. 4. Preferable licenced CC-BY or equivalent but will accept licensing equivalent to CC-BY-ND, CC-BY-NC, or CC-BY-NC- ND. 5. There will be a tolerance band of 10% at unit submission level. 6. Can exclude third party materials, if licensing cannot be obtained.
- 5. REF & UKRI: the practicalities UKRI applies to funded authors: REF applies to all authors Licensing requirements for Accepted Manuscripts: CCBY REF 2026 implementation = Significant training requirements for staff Is this too much too soon, or too little too late? Should REF be an enforcer of Open Access? Is this a threat to an OA landscape?
- 6. Publishing landscape Commercial publishers in ‘thinking’ mode Rise of the BPC & CPC Rise of Rights Retention? Barcelona Declaration Sustainable publishing models: Diamond
- 7. Diamond OA publishing and future- proofing • Sustainability and equity but content and value for money. • QUB institutional monograph fund. • Diamond initiatives and criteria. • Open Research and subject support. • What will persuade authors to publish outside of the big publishers? • An institutional press?
Editor's Notes
- #3: Any creative commons licence is permitted under the policy, however we prefer CC BY, this applies to both the AAM and the version of record.
- #6: Commercial publishers have been generally silent on how they interpreted UKRI policies and now the REF consultation cycle. Recently a couple of the larger publishers have contacted us directly. We have seen the rise of the BPC &CPC . Attendant cost. UKRI have already capped costs so the shortfall will need to be made up. This is not sustainable and in the short term we have been looking at advising academics on negotiation with commercial publishers. Will we see the rise of Rights Retention Statements; mandated for monographs in university policy? A question also arises as to whether publishers would be happy with authors retaining their rights. We have green if not but not all institutions have a repository. The Barcelona declaration (2024) espouses investing in OA publishing infrastructure, including abstracting and indexing platforms. This should be significant for the REF cycle.
- #7: Diamond is a ‘commitment to bibliodiversity, affirming equitable access to scholarly publishing and research outputs regardless of geographical, financial, or institutional constraints’ (UNESCO 2024). We are committed to these principles and to providing opportunities to publish OA but need to look at content in relation to value for money. QUB Institutional Monograph fund for non-funded authors is funding Diamond models. Will be a consolidated rolling fund but will this be enough? Criteria for selection (drawing on early work by University of Manchester and others): compliance, content, equity and ethics, governance, metadata and discovery, OA publishing scheme/ initiative and value for money. QUB has joined Scottish Universities Press (SUP). Books published with Scottish Universities Press will be fully OA and compliant with REF2029. SUP is an effective model for Diamond at all publishing stages and is value for money. We are looking forward to working with them. The question remains of what will persuade authors to publish outside of the big publishers? May boil down to budget as we simply cannot afford to go down the BPC/CPC route with commercial publishers. We have seen the pitfalls of this with journals. We need to continue embed Diamond as the best option for output. Prestige publishers and concerns around promotion need to be addressed. Is an institutional press the answer for us or collaboration on a wider scale? We are scoping these options.