Queensland University of Technology has been awarded a new round of funding under the Department of Education, Science and Training Strategic Infrastructure Initiative Scheme to undertake an analysis of publication agreements from large and small publishers, both Australian and international.

Building on the work of the existing OAK Law Project, this project will develop a detailed list of the attitudes of publishers’ as evidenced in the terms of publishing agreements. Known as the ‘OAK List’, it aims to be interoperable with the UK-based SHERPA List.

The OAK List will provide an easy to use reference on what each publisher’s agreement says about open access. It will be of interest to information managers and academics alike.

This project will also consider new forms of publication agreements that are emerging that try to accommodate the growing community desire for academics to provide their finished material on the internet.

In an era where research quality is linked closely with citation and impact it has been argued that open access provides academics and universities with a distinct advantage. What our project aims to do is highlight the options available for universities and academics in terms of managing copyright for commercial publication and open access.