Fueled by scientists' resentment at perceived exploitation by established publishers, and driven by new opportunities in information technology, open access publishing burst onto the scene in biomedicine about five years ago. Most readers of The Scientist will be aware of the principal, two-part, argument in its favor, namely that:
Open access publishing has moved rapidly from the revolutionary to the relative mainstream. Numerous journals now cater to a wide range of scientific disciplines and subdisciplines. It also spurred enterprise within the established publishing industry, where new products and services have been developed. As seen from the viewpoint of the researcher, the publishing scene is currently one of innovation and healthy competition.
The single area that has remained unexplored by the open access approach is, oddly, the one for which the case is most compelling: reports of exceptional importance and broad interest. By definition, these papers are few and far between ...
