Build It and They Will Come? Support for Open Access in Australia

Abstract

Australia has enjoyed governmental support for open access for approximately a decade. This paper provides a brief overview of the infrastructure now in place as a result, including widespread repositories and mandates at institutional and funding levels. In addition, the funding process for Australian universities means citation information for all research output has been collected for many years. This offers a unique test case for attempting to determine whether good infrastructure support results in a higher uptake of open access. The difficulties in establishing the percentage of research which is available open access are explored. While this means it is not possible to answer the question definitively, suggestions are made for possible future research.