Open Access to Science & Research

The European Commission has recently outlined measures to improve access to scientific knowledge produced in Europe. Better access to EU-funded scientific papers and data will make it easier for researchers and businesses to build on the results of publicly-funded research. This will boost Europe’s innovation capacity and give citizens quicker access to scientific discoveries.

” ‘Open Access’ refers to the practice of granting free Internet access to research articles. As all research and innovation builds on earlier achievements, an efficient system for broad dissemination of and access to research publications and raw data can accelerate scientific progress.

Statistics show that there are approximately 800 publishing houses in Europe that publish almost half of the world’s research articles. European researchers publish roughly 43 % of the research papers produced across the globe. The Open Access pilot will ensure open access to a significant amount of scientific articles resulting from research funded under FP7. “

The Communication sets out open access policy objectives for the research funded by the Commission through Horizon 2020. An accompanying Recommendation provides a policy framework for improving access to a preservation of scientific information in EU Member States.