Open access publishing takes a step forward

By Alan Osborn. The European Union (EU) appears ready in principle to endorse the European Commission’s proposals for developing open access to scientific information arising from publicly funded research. But officials say there is some way to go before a detailed system can be agreed.
Ministers from the 27 member countries, meeting as the EU’s competitiveness council, last week took a first look at the Brussels text and “supported the idea of developing broader and more rapid access to scientific publications in order to help researchers and businesses to build on the findings of publicly funded research”, said the council. Read more...