Journal articles that result from publicly funded research in Norway?must be open access within the next seven years, according to new guidelines.

The government said that it expects researchers to ¡°play a vital role¡± in converting important paywalled journals into open-access ones.

Only in exceptional circumstances would publicly funded research be published in journals that do not allow academics to deposit a copy in a repository, it added.

The Norwegian government outlined its plan for the future of academic publishing in a document titled ¡°National goals and guidelines for open access to research articles¡±, released on 22 August. It says that?Norway¡¯s national goals on open access need to align with those of other countries and the European Union because of the international nature of academic publishing.

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The EU¡¯s Council agreed in May last year that scientific publications should be immediately accessible by 2020.

The Norwegian guidelines say: ¡°The goal of the government is to make all publicly funded Norwegian research articles openly available by 2024. Norway?shall be a driving force for all publicly financed research articles to be made openly available at the time of publishing.

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¡°The research community in particular is expected to play a vital role in promoting open access through their national and international networks, and to convert important journals within their subject areas from closed subscription-based journals to open access titles,¡± the document adds.

The government also calls on institutions and research funders to help meet the target.

¡°Openness about the results of research is a core academic value,¡± it says, adding that?open-access publishing benefits the development and application of knowledge.

¡°Results of publicly funded research should therefore be publicly available,¡± it continues.

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The document adds that only in ¡°exceptional circumstances¡± may publicly funded research be published in journals that do not allow an academic repository copy to be made, but it does not specify what these circumstances may be.

holly.else@timeshighereducation.com