Other Open Access Models
While all forms of open access (OA) fall broadly into either the green or gold classification, there are additional, nuanced, forms of OA which are used to highlight distinguishing features among the varieties. Because these terms are also often used to describe OA, it is worth understanding their unique features.
Platinum or Diamond Open Access
Platinum OA gets its name from its association with gold OA, as it is seen as a premier or superior form. The distinguishing characteristic of platinum OA is that articles are published OA immediately in OA journals but there are no article processing charges (APCs) back to the author. As discussed previously, APCs are a common characteristic of gold OA, yet it is not true that all or even most OA journals charge these fees. Many gold OA journals rely on institutional support, grants, memberships etc. to fund their publication and as a result do not ask their authors to contribute any additional funds. It is because these journals do not charge back any costs to authors that they are granted the platinum distinction.
Hybrid Open Access
Hybrid OA is used to describe a journal that publishes both gold OA and traditional subscription-based research. These journals present their authors with the choice to either pay an APC and have their work disseminated as OA, or to submit it as a non-OA article. Hybrid journals are a contentious issue among OA advocates, as they largely reinforce the supremacy of traditional publication venues and often provide an additional revenue stream to already profitable journals. Hybrid journals also tend to have substantial APC charges, with the more prestigious journals charging the highest fees. Notably, academic libraries take issue with hybrid journals as they charge authors to make a subsection of their articles OA, but still require libraries to pay undiscounted subscription fees to access the additional pay-walled content. As a result, hybrid journals are often accused of “double dipping”.
Bronze Open Access
Bronze OA refers to scholarship that may be publicly available online but does not include clear reuse permission. Because of this lack of clarity, bronze is used to confer its inferior status in relation to gold or platinum OA literature, which is clearly marked for reuse. Whether or not bronze OA meets funder requirements or other OA polices is dependent on individual polices. According to a 2018 study, Bronze OA, while little talked about, may be the most prevalent form of OA in practice. As mentioned earlier in this section, bronze OA is also called gratis OA.
Dig DeeperTo learn more about the challenges of hybrid OA, review: Matthias, Lisa. (2018). The worst of both worlds: Hybrid Open Access. Licensed under CC BY. Kingsley, Danny and Philip Boyes. (2016). Hybrid open access – an analysis. Licensed under CC BY. |
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Journals that publish open access without charging authors article processing charges are sometimes referred to as diamond or platinum OA. Since they do not charge either readers or authors directly, such publishers often require funding from external sources such as the sale of advertisements, academic institutions, learned societies, philanthropists or government grants. (Wikipedia)
Bronze open access articles are free to read only on the publisher page, but lack a clearly identifiable license. Such articles are typically not available for reuse. (Wikipedia)
