Open Access Week

This has been Open Access Week across North America and even further afield. There have been many events. In Canada, CARL/ABRC has a list of OA Week events, but not everything is noted there. UVic’s own events, for instance. The ACRL Blog has collected a few highlights.

Of course, it is libraries that are often organizing these events, as librarians are best positioned to witness the daily spectacle of publicly funded research given away for peanuts or less into private hands. These in turn do very well by it, whether it is delivered in print or electronically. Libraries seek relief from the escalating costs. Between 1984 and 2005, journal prices increased 637%, and Law titles by 386% (see Table 9) in the US, while distribution and printing/binding costs, presumably, were much reduced. This is compared to a CPI increase over the same period of 188%. Remember, remuneration to authors or universities for these materials is unheard of. And of course, the public is not allowed access.