Open Access is a publishing model which allows readers to access scientific publications online free of charge. Open Access
removes price and permission barriers: there are no subscription fees, and unrestricted use of all published material is made possible
thanks to flexible intellectual property laws for authors.
By removing access barriers typical of traditional publishing models, Open Access accelerates research and learning and enables the
sharing of knowledge on a global level. Knowledge is a heritage that should be freely accessible to everyone.
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The scientific community and the whole of society benefits from Open Access.
Comprehensive, fast and efficient research cycles allow scholars to make progress in their careers more effectively thanks to immediate
access to new research materials, findings and the latest scientific developments.
At the same time, by providing an information-sharing framework where readers can refer to, distribute or display the work of others,
Open Access contributes to the wider dissemination, increased usage and impact of researchers' work.
Open Access brings increased visibility to institutions that fund and supervise research. Universities, institutes, foundations, national
funds for scientific research and government agencies all benefit from the increased visibility and higher citation rates of funded
projects. Moreover, unrestricted use of and immediate access to free research literature provides a great resource for teaching,
conference presentations and lectures, and thus both teaching staff and students benefit highly from it.
Finally, since they are able to connect readers to relevant content and expand their catalogs at no cost, libraries are likely to profit from
the favorable opportunities offered by Open Access publishing.
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