Re: Interview with Derk Haank, CEO, Elsevier

From: Richard Poynder <rich_p_at_DIAL.PIPEX.COM>
Date: Wed, 3 Apr 2002 12:14:14 +0100

At 11:44 03/04/2002 +0100, you wrote:

>At 15:14 01/04/02 -0600, Thomas Krichel writes:
>> Bernard Lang writes:
>>
>> > The one important point I read there is:
>> >
>>DH> "You can put your paper on your own Web site if you want. The only
>>DH> thing we insist on is that if we publish your article you don't
>>DH> publish it in a Springer or Wiley journal, too. In fact, I believe we
>>DH> have the most liberal copyright policy available."
>> >
>> > Is that what the Elsevier copyright form says ?
>>
>> Yes, at least one that was common for economics journals
>> a few years ago. However, as far as I am aware off,
>> that policy is not posted on any Elsevier web site.
>>
>> > Furthermore, he did not say anything about putting it on another web
>> > site. On an open archive managed by someone else ?
>>
>> The concept of "own" web site is a fuzzy one.
>
>I have in my drawer a copy of copyright signed with Elsevier about 8
>months ago by a researcher of my lab.
>
>Below, part of Rights of authors :
>
> "Posting of a preprint version of this work on an electronic public
> server is permitted. Posting of the published article on a secure
> network (not accessible to the public) within the author's
> institution is permitted. However, posting of the published article
> on an electronic public server can only be done with Elsevier's
> written permission."
>
>This seems more precise than is the interview. What is your feeling?
>
>Helene Bosc
>Bibliotheque
>Unite Physiologie de la Reproduction
>et des Comportements
>UMR 6073 INRA-CNRS-Universite F. Rabelais
>37380 Nouzilly
>France


Below is some text from the interview that didn't make it into the final
version due to length constraints. It may or may not help to clarify
things, but here it is anyway.

Richard Poynder: If an academic went to an Elsevier journal and said "I
want to retain the copyright on my paper for self-archiving purposes" the
editors would accept that?

Derk Haank: We can't have individual negotiations with every individual
author. People transfer copyright, but at the same time we grant them usage
for anything else other than in a commercial or society journal, so you can
put it in your reader, you can put it on your own web site, and you can put
it on the university web site etc., but for official publishing uses we
expect exclusivity.

Richard Poynder: And that is stated in the copyright form they sign?

Derk Haank: Yes. Copyright has proved a very well understood way to make
clear that that is what is happening, but I am open for discussions with
regard to the author retaining the copyright if that serves anybody better.
Received on Wed Apr 03 2002 - 13:54:51 BST