Abstract
The Open Access movement has gathered momentum in the 12 years that have passed since the Budapest Open Access Initiative of 2002. Then, it was declared that the only barrier to research should be technical barriers to accessing the Internet itself (described in 2002 as “the new technology”). Since then, open access has become more widespread, with a variety of routes to achieve it, and, moreover, in some cases it has become mandatory to engage in open access initiatives.
This poster will examine the various models of open access scholarly communication that are available to authors, including depositing in open access repositories such as the University of Bolton Institutional Repository (UBIR), publishing in open access journals and using APC models to engage in open access. The benefits will be presented, as will concerns and issues, which include concerns over the dilution of scholarly communication, copyright concerns and ease of engagement, among others. It will be seen that although these concerns are valid, they are not insurmountable and the discussion of these can aid to enrich and inform the entire process. The various means of making theses open access will be examined, and will include discussion of depositing theses into open access repositories such as the University of Bolton Institutional Repository (UBIR). Use of the British Library EThOS service will also be discussed, as will open access publishing of other types of research.