2021: strongest improvement in Open Access share yet
As part of our monitoring, we evaluated 14,641 publications resulting from SNSF-funded research published in 2021. Of these, 77% are available in Open Access (OA). An unprecedented increase over the 63% measured for 2020.
The share of publications not being openly accessible in any version went down from 18% to 12% in 2021. We saw an increase in all three eligible routes to OA (see the information box on What is Open Access), with “hybrid” now making up the biggest share at 32%. For 2021, the Read & Publish agreements with major publishers, negotiated by swissuniversities, show their full effect. “Gold” continues to grow at the same rate as observed in last year’s analysis. Notably, the “green” road has gained in importance and now accounts for 17%. This road means making a publication openly accessible with a secondary publication deposited in a repository. A relevant development, as it indicates improving compliance with the SNSF’s and many institutional Open Access policies.