KAUST signs Read & Publish agreement with Royal Society of Chemistry

The Royal Society of Chemistry has agreed a new Read & Publish deal with the King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KAUST), in Saudi Arabia, becoming the 10th country in which we have agreed such a deal.

KAUST, whose mission is to advance science and technology through distinctive and collaborative research integrated with graduate education, were keen to find a solution that supports their Open Access goals. Corresponding authors at KAUST are now able to publish Open Access in hybrid Royal Society of Chemistry journals, as well as having access to read the full range of scientific content from these titles.

The Read & Publish model allows articles published in Royal Society of Chemistry journals to be made publicly available at the time of publication, at no further direct cost to the author. The three-year agreement, with an option to extend by a further year, represents one of the first in Saudi Arabia and will ensure that articles from KAUST researchers are free to read around the world.

A growing community

Stephen Rumbelow, Royal Society of Chemistry Director of Sales & Marketing, says: "We are proud to have added another important international partner through this Read & Publish agreement with KAUST, not least as this means we can continue our support for the Saudi research community. It is encouraging that they have chosen to join over 80 institutions from ten other countries who have adopted this approach.

"Our longer-term goal is to make the wider chemistry community’s transition to OA smooth, fair and sustainable, with no compromise to quality or to ethical standards. There are clear benefits to publishing open access, as articles published OA in Royal Society of Chemistry journals are downloaded 97% more often than non-OA work, increasing reach and potential citations for their cutting-edge research."

J. K. Vijayakumar, Library Director at KAUST said: "We are proud to demonstrate our commitment to open access through the first open access policy in the Middle East and will continue our efforts to align with global Open Access initiatives. Through a combination of transformative agreements and research repository services, we strive to ensure our research articles on world-leading scientific advances are available to all."