The journal Tracés in full open access
Since the beginning of 2017, the journal Tracés is fully accessible in online open access on OpenEdition, while remaining available in print.
Issue 32 of the journal1, “Moving the Frontiers of Work”, is the first issue to be released simultaneously in print and with the digital version in open access.
On its blog, the editorial board explains the process that led it to abandon its policy of distribution with an embargo period in order to move to full open access. Heavily involved in debates over the last few years on open access to publicly funded academic publications, the journal team could not, however, see a satisfactory economic model that might have allowed it to move to open access while maintaining its editorial quality.
One of the factors that ultimately allowed the journal to opt for open access was its participation in the OpenEdition freemium programme, which consists in providing access to the HTML version of the texts while reserving certain functionalities for subscribing institutions, such as downloading articles in ePub and PDF formats. OpenEdition then remits a portion of subscription revenues to journals, based on the number of visits.
The other decisive factor was the creation of a part-time editor position through the allocation of CNRS funding. For the journal team: “While the creation of this post confirms the maturity and heightened visibility of Tracés, it also marks a change in the policy of public support for journals: our desire to switch to open access, in accordance with the policy advocated by the CNRS, was a necessary condition for the creation of this part-time position.”
We congratulate Tracés for this change in editorial policy and for its contribution to debates on the issues of production and access to research.
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1. Tracés passe à l’Open Access !, 30 mai 2017, URL : https://traces.hypotheses.org/1938