Economic Contribution of Industries Rely…

Economic Contribution of Industries Relying on Fair Use :
This report employs the latest data available to answer a very important question: what contribution is made to our economy by industries that depend on the limitations to copyright protection when engaged in commerce? As this report shows, such industries make a huge contribution. In an era of highly competitive markets for information goods and services, changes to the boundaries of copyright protection will alter
the economic landscape. Broader regulation of economic activity by copyright might encourage additional creativity, but it will deter certain types of technology innovation, and may undermine competition and
free expression. Our information policy must therefore balance the incentives that IP regulation creates against the disincentives that result. For 300 years, copyright law has recognized this fragile balance.

URL : http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/threatlevel/2010/04/fairuseeconomy.pdf

THE DISSEMINATION OF SCHOLARLY INFORMATI…

THE DISSEMINATION OF SCHOLARLY INFORMATION: OLD APPROACHES AND NEW POSSIBILITIES :
Current methods of disseminating scholarly information focus on the use of journals who retain exclusive rights in the material they publish. Using a simple model we explore the reasons for the development of the traditional journal model, why it is no longer effcient and how it could be improved upon. One of our main aims is to go beyond the basic question of distribution (access) to that of filtering, i.e. the process of
matching information with the scholars who want it. With the volume of information production ever growing { and attention ever more scarce – filtering is becoming crucial and digital technology offers the possibility of radical innovation in this area. In particular, distribution and filtering can be separated allowing filtering to be made open and decentralized. This would promises to deliver dramatic increases in transparency and efficiency as well as greatly increased innovation in related product, processes and services.

URL : http://www.econ.cam.ac.uk/dae/repec/cam/pdf/cwpe1023.pdf

TVA de 19.6% sur les ressources électron…

TVA de 19.6% sur les ressources électroniques : jusqu’à quand ? :
Des pressions se font jour de toutes parts, tant du côté du monde de l’édition que du monde universitaire ou de la sphère politique, pour demander une modification du taux de TVA appliqué aux ressources électroniques. S’il est vrai que les débats se focalisent pour l’heure sur le cas du livre numérique, il n’en reste pas moins que la taxation à 19.6% touche tous les types de ressources électroniques, des périodiques électroniques aux bases de données en passant par les logiciels. Il existe cependant un outil très méconnu des établissements publics universitaires qui leur permet de conjurer partiellement la TVA : il s’agit du cas des acquisitions de ressources électroniques entrant dans la catégorie fiscale des dépenses mixtes.
URL : http://archivesic.ccsd.cnrs.fr/sic_00479690/fr/

Open Source Observatory and Repository (…

Open Source Observatory and Repository (OSOR) :
The OSOR project has implemented a repository and collaborative development environment, or forge, targeting specifically European public sector organizations. To ensure effective collaboration among Public Administrations across multiple Member States, the project is also providing an information point that includes guidelines, news and case studies related to open source. The platform has been designed in
such a way that it can be integrated with other services/solutions such as repositories that exist at a national level.
Technical, business and legal support for the collaboration of administrations using open source software are provided through the OSOR. Furthermore, guidelines and recommendations are also published which help public administrations create, set up and maintain their own regional repository based on the OSOR.eu platform.

URL : http://www.epractice.eu/files/Open%20Source%20Observatory%20and%20Repository%20%28OSOR%29_0.pdf

A Survey of the Scholarly Journals Using…

A Survey of the Scholarly Journals Using Open Journal Systems :
A survey of 998 scholarly journals that use Open Journal Systems (OJS), an open source
journal software platform, captures the characteristics of an emerging class of scholarpublisher
open access journals (with some representation from more traditional scholarly
society and print-based titles). The journals in the sample follow traditional norms for peerreviewing,
acceptance rates, and disciplinary focus, but are distinguished by the number that
offer open access to their content, the growth rates in new titles, the participation rates from
developing countries, and the extremely low operating budgets. The survey also documents
the limited degree to which open source software can alter a field of communication, as OJS
appears to have created a third path, dedicated to maximizing access to research and
scholarship, as an alternative to traditional scholarly society and commercial publishing
routes.

URL : http://pkp.sfu.ca/files/OJS%20Journal%20Survey.pdf

Open Access in Italy : The report descri…

Open Access in Italy :
The report describes the state of the art of Open Access in Italy, offering an overview on institutional and disciplinary based repositories, repository contents, and OA mandates. Moreover, the report describes the major projects provided by two Italian supercomputing consortia (such as PLEIADI and SURPlus). The authors of the report then reflect upon the future of Open Access in Italy, concluding that without a national funded planning strategy voluntary initiatives are somewhat uncertain.
URL : http://eprints.rclis.org/18365/