More threats to policing the open access model

Publisher Threatens to Sue Blogger for $1-Billion from the [The Chronicle of Higher Education]

For more information, check out a previous newspost entry: “Predatory Open Access Publishers.”

“In 2012, Jeffrey Beall, a librarian at the University of Colorado at Denver, told The Chronicle that he keeps a list of “predatory” open-access publishers, whose main goal is to generate profits. Such publishers, says Mr. Beall, “add little value to scholarship, pay little attention to digital preservation, and operate using fly-by-night, unsustainable business models.””

http://scholarlyoa.com/individual-journals/

III’s New CEO Calls for Greater Collaboration

Library Journal Excerpt: “Without deprecating the company’s past, Massana sent a clear message that the culture of III is shifting toward greater accountability and client focus, and he also said the company is moving away from its black box reputation and embracing, as a corporate imperative, greater openness and collaboration.”  read more: http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/05/technology/iiis-new-ceo-calls-for-greater-collaboration/

Open Access Scams

We here at Collaborative Librarianship are all for open access, but all good things have a negative side.  We encourage you to follow Jeffrey Beall’s web page capturing “predatory Open Access Publishers.”

“In 2012, Jeffrey Beall, a librarian at the University of Colorado at Denver, told The Chronicle that he keeps a list of “predatory” open-access publishers, whose main goal is to generate profits. Such publishers, says Mr. Beall, “add little value to scholarship, pay little attention to digital preservation, and operate using fly-by-night, unsustainable business models.””

http://scholarlyoa.com/individual-journals/

NATIONAL ARCHIVES TO HELP LAUNCH THE DIGITAL PUBLIC LIBRARY OF AMERICA’S PILOT PROJECT

Excerpt:  “Washington, DC. . . Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero announced today that the National Archives, as a leading content provider to the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA), will help launch its first pilot project.

The DPLA is a large-scale, collaborative project across government, research institutions, museums, libraries and archives to build a digital library platform to make America’s cultural and scientific history free and publicly available anytime, anywhere, online through a single access point.”

Evolution of libraries had emerged-collaboration was a key to survival

Excerpt “By the beginning of the 21st century, several trends in the evolution of libraries had emerged-collaboration was a key to survival; technology would play an integral role; library as “place” would supersede a warehouse function; and digitization would prevail.

In this article I want to explore two experiments that represent the perfect interweaving of these trends-HathiTrust (hathitrust.org) and the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA; dp.la). These experiments in shared systems, metadata, and digitized content represent projects of a grand and grander scale. While there is no guarantee that either of these projects will be around, at least in current manifestation, it is almost certain that within 15 years their models will provide guidance for any large-scale library ventures of the future.”

Second shoe drops: new White House Directive mandates OA

Information on historic open access decision!

http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/ostp_public_access_memo_2013.pdf

https://plus.google.com/109377556796183035206/posts/8hzviMJeVHJ

http://blogs.nature.com/news/2013/02/us-white-house-announces-open-access-policy.html

http://www.arl.org/news/pr/arl-commends-obama-administration-for-historic-action-opening-up-access.shtml

 

Librarians and Lawyers

Inside Higher Ed.
Excerpt: “Beall, who’s been running the blog devoted to critical analysis of scholarly open-access publishing for about a year, declined to answer questions specifically related to the letter or the Canadian Center for Science and Education. But he said predatory open-access journals are those that unprofessionally exploit the author-pays, open-access model for their own profit. He guessed that amounted to 5 to 10 percent of open-access journals, which have proliferated in recent years due to increased pressure on academics, particularly in Asia, to publish”

Read more: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/02/15/another-publisher-accuses-librarian-libel#ixzz2LGJJxlvT

Open, but not open?

Nature, Excerpt: “Academics are — slowly — adopting the view that publicly funded research should be made freely available. But data released yesterday suggest that, given the choice, even researchers who publish in open-access journals want to place restrictions on how their papers can be re-used —for example, sold by others for commercial profit.”

HathiTrust collaboration continues strong after five years

“2012 brought to a close the initial 5-year charter period that HathiTrust was granted by its founding institutions. 5 years later, the collaborative is stronger than ever. More than 70 academic and research institutions from around the world participate in HathiTrust, supporting a digital repository of 10.6 million volumes and a host of shared activities, all geared toward the provision of greater access to the scholarly and cultural record, more secure preservation, and greater research opportunities for our constituencies than we have ever had before. As we launch into a new year, and a new stage of HathiTrust, it is worthwhile to reflect on our progress and achievements in 2012. These include:

• A significant legal victory and affirmation of Fair Use in the case of Authors Guild v. HathiTrust
• Many new partners and a new governance structure
• A steady stream of technological improvements and enhancements
• Development of new services and infrastructure
• Continued engagement with our community in the form of presentations, discussions, and the HathiTrust Research Center Uncamp

A recap of activities in these areas and more can be read in the review, attached, and also available on our website:
http://www.hathitrust.org/updates_review2012

Please share this information widely.”

Best wishes,
Heather Christenson
on behalf of the HathiTrust Communications Working Group

 

Textbook Collaboration

“The Open SUNY Textbook Program will produce fifteen free online textbooks in 2013, thanks to the support from a SUNY Innovative Instruction Technology Grant (IITG) and library funding, and the time and talent of librarians and consultation by SUNY Press.”