This route is often, although not always, accompanied by article processing charges (APCs). The Gold route refers to freely accessible research articles at the point of publication. OA pertains to documents made available via two main pathways: the Gold route and the Green route ( Harnad et al., 2008). Reflecting this ambition, there are currently over 700 OA policies and mandates recorded worldwide from a range of research institutes and funding bodies ( ). As such, the major drivers behind OA relate to within- and between-community equality ( Veletsianos & Kimmons, 2012), as well as bridging the global North-South research divide ( Adcock & Fottrell, 2008). The rationale is that the research process is facilitated by ensuring rapid and widespread access to research findings such that all communities have the opportunity to build upon them and participate in scholarly conversations.
Open Access (OA) refers to the removal of major obstacles to accessing, sharing and re-using the outputs of scholarly research. Yet, it provides one foundation for increasing engagement with researchers regarding ethical standards of publishing and the broader implications of 'Open Research'. Open Access remains only one of the multiple challenges that the scholarly publishing system is currently facing. However, Open Access has the potential to become unsustainable for research communities if high-cost options are allowed to continue to prevail in a widely unregulated scholarly publishing market. Open Access supersedes all potential alternative modes of access to the scholarly literature through enabling unrestricted re-use, and long-term stability independent of financial constraints of traditional publishers that impede knowledge sharing. The societal impact of Open Access is strong, in particular for advancing citizen science initiatives, and leveling the playing field for researchers in developing countries. Furthermore, Open Access has the potential to save both publishers and research funders considerable amounts of financial resources, and can provide some economic benefits to traditionally subscription-based journals. The economic impact of Open Access is less well-understood, although it is clear that access to the research literature is key for innovative enterprises, and a range of governmental and non-governmental services. While there is clearly much scope for additional research, several key trends are identified, including a broad citation advantage for researchers who publish openly, as well as additional benefits to the non-academic dissemination of their work. This review aims to be a resource for current knowledge on the impacts of Open Access by synthesizing important research in three major areas: academic, economic and societal. In spite of this, there is a general lack of consensus regarding the potential pros and cons of Open Access at multiple levels.
At the current stage, Open Access has become such a global issue that it is critical for all involved in scholarly publishing, including policymakers, publishers, research funders, governments, learned societies, librarians, and academic communities, to be well-informed on the history, benefits, and pitfalls of Open Access.
Ongoing debates surrounding Open Access to the scholarly literature are multifaceted and complicated by disparate and often polarised viewpoints from engaged stakeholders.
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