What's Mine is Yours : A Brief Introduction to Open Access in the European Union

Over 300 years ago, Sir Isaac Newton astutely observed that if he had seen further than most, it was “by standing on the shoulders of giants.” In one way or another, all scientific research builds on former work. Certainly on a scientific level therefore, sharing is caring. In the digital age, disseminating and exchanging content online has become child's play. In practice however, freely sharing academic papers is not as easy as one might think, as publication in a scientific journal more often than not entails a transfer of the copyright. As a result, the publisher obtains the right to exclude… and the scholar loses the right to share. Still, this is not the end of the story, at least not for the “open access” movement. Open access aims to provide users with free online access to scientific information and thereby facilitate further research. In this Scoop, we discuss the rise of open access and the relevant state of play in the European Union