INRIA - HAL-INRIA Open Archive - How to negotiate your publishing agreement to be able to self-archive it on an open system

3. How to negotiate your publishing agreement to be able to self-archive it on an open system

Are copyrights suitable for publishing on an open archive system?
What precautions should I take when negotiating with a publisher to be able to self-archive my publications?
What transfer conditions should I accept from the publisher?: • Never transfer your moral right.; • Transfer your property rights.; • Authorize the development of a validated publication that will be distributed.; • Define the publication(s) for which there will be a publishing agreement.; • Check that the distribution medium is specified.; • Check the limitations of the transfer over space and time.; • Check the copyright domain and the copyright assignation; • Check the financial conditions of the transfer, in case compensation is due by the publisher..
Exclusive or non-exclusive?

Are copyrights suitable for publishing on an open archive system?

The open archive system is an alternative to a traditional publishing system.
The system is not is not prejudicial to copyrights. Copyright rules are a tool for providing access to scientific publications while maintaining the author's fundamental rights.

Open access to scientific publications is a trend that has received overwhelming support in most European countries and is becoming a generally accepted practice by publishers.

What precautions should I take when negotiating with a publisher to be able to self-archive my publications?

Negotiations with publishers will be easier if you keep in mind a few basic principles that apply to the transfer of copyrights (property rights) and if you have previously defined the methods for distributing the publication with any co-authors.

The most important thing to remember when negotiating with a publisher is to read carefully any proposed agreement (even the fine print) and not to hesitate to ask for clarification on any clause or note that is hard to understand.

Feel free to contact archive-ouverte@inria.fr for help in this area.

The second thing is to keep a record of all copyright transfer agreements you sign in order to ascertain the transferred rights for each publication.

What transfer conditions should I accept from the publisher?

When you negotiate a publishing agreement, you transfer your economic rights to one or more clearly defined publications for a limited period and for a defined geographical area. The copyright domain (i.e. the purpose of use) must also be defined.

You can transfer an exclusive or a non-exclusive right, for free or in exchange for compensation.

• Never transfer your moral right.

You cannot transfer your moral right. The publisher is required to respect that right.

For example, if a clause of the publishing agreement calls for the transfer of the right to a name, that clause is null and void.

On the other hand, the fact that the publisher refuses to publish your article and provides the reason for its refusal is not an infringement on your right of disclosure, insofar as you can distribute your publication by on another means.

• Transfer your economic rights.

Any intellectual property transfer agreement must be made in writing.

Economic rights are structured like a mosaic: you can transfer one or several rights.

However, you must transfer enough rights to enable the publisher to do its job.

Publishing agreements call for the transfer of:

reproduction rights;
representation rights;
marketing rights (to market in return for payment).

• Authorize the creation of a validated publication that will be distributed.

Publishing agreements call for an authorization to enable the creation of a validated publication:

to translate the article or have it translated;
to adapt and/or correct the article.

• Define the publication(s) for which there will be a publishing licence.

Do not transfer to the publisher all your future publications unless they are accurately identified.

Title, formalization, name of the authors, and proofreading and validation terms must be sufficiently well-defined in the agreement to allow to identify the publication.

For example, a clause stating that the author agrees to transfer rights to all pre-publications written between 01/01/2006 and 31/12/2006 would be null and void.

If you plan to submit your article on an open archive system:

You should indicate or have indicated that the transfer does not concern the version that will be validated and/or translated by the publisher (post-publication) and reserve the right to submit the version sent to the publisher, unmodified (pre-publication), on an open archive system.

• Check that the distribution medium is specified.

The distribution medium must be specified.

Warning: A common practice is to list all the existing or future distribution media. This clause is not null and void because it is sufficiently clear, but it is not necessarily favourable.

It is better to ask the publisher to define the medium/media that will actually be published (scientific review, book, CD-ROM).

If you plan to submit your article on an open archive system:

Reserve the right to distribute the publication in electronic format submitted to a database.

• Check the limitations of the transfer over space and time.

A limitation in space and time is always necessary.

As for the geographical limitation, check that the transfer is guaranteed worldwide. Because whatever the distribution channel, in principle it is not in your interest to limit the spread of the ideas contained in the publication (unless confidentiality or secrecy issues are related to protecting know-how, a patent submission, or a defense secret).

On the other hand, as concerns the limitation over time, it is better for it to be clearly defined. However It is often difficult to negotiate this point.

Warning: A transfer clause for the legal duration of property right protection is valid because it is sufficiently accurate. It means that you transfer the rights for your lifetime and for 70 years after your death.

• Check the copyright domain and the copyright assignation.

The copyright domain (how the publication will be used) and the destination transfer (to what purpose it will be used) must be specified in the publishing licence.

A publisher cannot reserve the right to distribute the publication for all intents. The publisher must specify the purpose for distributing the publication (in principle for information or pedagogical purposes).

If you plan to submit your article on an open archive system:

Explicitly reserve the right to self-archive the publication on an open system.

• Check the financial conditions of the transfer, in case compensation is due by the publisher.

For a publishing agreement signed by the author in exchange for compensation, this compensation shall not be paid on a fixed basis but shall be proportional to the profit generated by use of the transferred rights, unless the author decides otherwise

Exclusive or non-exclusive?

Transferring an exclusive right does not mean transferring that right to only one person. It means that the distribution of the publication under the conditions (transfer domain and copyright assignation) and limits (publication, medium, time, space) defined in the agreement will not be possible, even on open archive system.

If you plan to submit your article on an open archive system:

Only transfer exclusive rights for a very limited destination, location, and duration.

To search or archive via HAL-INRIA.