AIP Publishing Supports the OSTP Directive to Agencies for the Development of Public Access Policies

Partnering with publishers will serve the best interests of all stakeholders

Melville, NY, February 25, 2013 – AIP Publishing has reviewed the OSTP directive released on February 22, 2013 by the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), John Holdren, which outlines guidelines for federal agencies to develop plans to support increased public access to the results of federally-funded scientific research. The directive aligns with the values of scholarly publishers in ensuring that the public and the entire research community have the widest possible access to the best scientific information, while recognizing the need for sustainable scholarly publishing business models. OSTP is commended for its emphasis on flexibility and partnerships.

“AIP Publishing is eager to continue our partnership activities with federal agencies to help craft policies that address the interests of the general public and all stakeholders involved in scholarly publishing”, says John Haynes, CEO of AIP Publishing.

Since the passage of America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-358), AIP Publishing, along with other publishers, has collaborated with agencies, such as the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation, to develop pilot projects that will tag research manuscripts with funding information and link digital data sets to publications. These pilot projects will continue as models of the public/private partnerships that the OSTP directive encourages.

AIP Publishing commends OSTP’s recognition of the important role that scholarly publishers play in the advancement of scholarship: “…publishers provide valuable services, including peer-review that are essential for ensuring the high quality and integrity of many scholarly publications. It is critical that these services continue to be made available.” The scholarly publishing industry possesses the expertise and capabilities to drive innovation in content delivery, discovery, and archiving.

AIP Publishing notes that the OSTP memorandum’s guidelines are flexible and do not mandate a single solution or model. “Fields of science are vast and varied; journals associated with certain areas of research can be jeopardized by mandated or short embargo periods,” notes John Haynes. The OSTP directive suggests a 12-month post-publication embargo as a guideline, but gives agencies the flexibility to work with publishers to modify embargo periods according to differences among fields and journal markets.

“The pursuit of widening public access is a significant opportunity for science.” says Louis Lanzerotti, chair of AIP Publishing’s Board. “All stakeholders are united in our mutual commitment to broadly disseminate knowledge. It follows that we should work together to increase public access for the benefit of science and society, while developing business models that support the infrastructure required for enhancing access and discoverability to high-quality, peer-reviewed scientific research.”

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About AIP Publishing

AIP Publishing LLC is a scholarly publisher in the physical and related sciences, providing the global science community with a comprehensive collection of highly cited peer reviewed scientific information. Accessed by researchers at nearly 4,000 institutions worldwide, AIP Publishing’s portfolio of 17 journals includes prestigious titles such as Applied Physics Letters, Journal of Applied Physics and The Journal of Chemical Physics, and the AIP Conference Proceedings series. AIP Publishing is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Institute of Physics, and publishes on behalf of several of AIP’s Member Societies and other publishing partners.

About AIP

The American Institute of Physics is an organization of 10 physical science societies, representing more than 135,000 scientists, engineers, and educators. Through its Physics Resources Center, AIP delivers valuable services and expertise in education and student programs, science communications, government relations, career services for science and engineering professionals, statistical research in physics employment and education, industrial outreach, and the history of physics and allied fields. AIP publishes Physics Today, the most influential and closely followed magazine of the physics community, and is also home to the Society of Physics Students and the Niels Bohr Library and Archives. AIP owns AIP Publishing LLC, a scholarly publisher in the physical and related sciences.

AIP Publishing contact:
John Linton
AIP Publishing, LLC
Tel +1 516-576-2232
jlinton@aip.org

AIP contact:
Liz Dart Caron
American Institute of Physics
Tel +1 301-209-3034
Cell +1 301-332-5322
lcaron@aip.org