Open access monographs: report and recommendations | Universities UK Open Access Monographs working group

"...Purpose

This report provides an overview of the open access (OA) landscape for monographs, significant publishing activities, and recent reports that provide an insight into the transition to OA for academic books. It is intended to be read by those who are unfamiliar with OA for monographs, and also those who wish to gain a broader understanding of the benefits of OA publishing.

This report is not intended to cover all contributions or activities of OA monographs. The first half of this report provides a background to OA academic books, reflecting on the current monograph market, UK and international policies before going on to situate the monograph in the context of the UK Research Excellence Framework (REF). Both the benefits and the challenges of OA monographs are also explored in the first section of this report. The second half captures significant reports and developments around OA monographs, providing a snapshot of current activity at a national and international level. The Universities UK Open Access Monograph Group recognises that the transition to OA is constantly evolving, with innovative business models and new reports emerging on an almost monthly basis – nine substantive papers on OA monographs and scholarly publishing have been published in the last year alone...."