Particle physics group votes to continue open-access deal

Cern-based consortium backs two more years of central payments for open access

The group behind the deal that allows many of Europe’s leading particle physicists to make their research articles free has unanimously voted to continue the arrangement for two years.

The governing council of the Sponsoring Consortium for Open Access Publishing in Particle Physics (SCOAP3) said the decision—made at a meeting in October—would “provide institutions and publishers of the SCOAP3 partnership with stability during the financial uncertainty resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic”. It will extend the deal for two years beyond the current end point of the end of 2022.