ACS Copyright changes

["Okerson, Ann" <ann.okerson@yale.edu>]

New ACS Journal Publishing Agreement expands author rights and 
clarifies responsibilities

Media Contact

Michael Bernstein
202-872-6042
m_bernstein@acs.org

Michael Woods
202-872-6293
m_woods@acs.org

WASHINGTON, Oct. 6, 2010 - The American Chemical Society's (ACS) 
Publications Division will begin rolling out a new publishing 
agreement in mid-October that expands author rights and clarifies 
author responsibilities. The ACS Journal Publishing Agreement 
(JPA) is a result of ACS' ongoing efforts to provide the best 
possible publishing experience for authors of ACS' suite of 38 
peer-reviewed journals, including its flagship Journal of the 
American Chemical Society. That experience includes efficient 
online manuscript submission; rapid, responsible peer review and 
publication; global distribution; the award-winning ACS Web 
Editions Platform; and now, extended author use rights.

The JPA replaces the previous ACS Copyright Status Form. It gives 
ACS authors a number of new rights regarding the use of their 
manuscripts and outlines certain behaviors that are expected of 
ACS authors.

There are several key differences between the new JPA 
<http://pubs.acs.org/userimages/ContentEditor/1285231362937/jpa_user_guide.pdf> 
and the old ACS Copyright Status Form:

*The new agreement specifically addresses what authors can do 
with the different versions of their manuscript - e.g. use in 
theses and collections, teaching and training, conference 
presentations, sharing with colleagues, and posting on websites 
and repositories. The terms under which these uses can occur are 
clearly identified to prevent misunderstandings that could 
jeopardize final publication of a manuscript.

*The new agreement clarifies that the transfer of copyright in 
Supporting Information is nonexclusive. Authors may use or 
authorize the use of Supporting Information in which they hold 
copyright for any purpose and in any format.

*The new agreement extends key terms of use to an author's 
previously published work with ACS - as long as the same 
conditions of use are met.

*Behaviors expected of ACS authors are more fully addressed 
throughout the agreement.

The JPA shines a spotlight on two current ACS programs. The first 
is ACS AuthorChoice

<http://pubs.acs.org/page/policy/authorchoice/index.html>,

which provides authors or their funding agencies the opportunity 
to sponsor immediate, unrestricted online access to their final 
published article. The other is ACS Articles on Request

<http://pubs.acs.org/page/policy/articlesonrequest/index.html>,

which permits convenient, free distribution of journal article 
reprints online via author-directed links provided to the author 
when their article is published online.

The JPA is a direct result of the extensive review and 
consultation process undertaken by a task force consisting of ACS 
journal authors, editors, librarians, governance members, and 
legal counsel who identified activities in which today's authors 
typically engage, or would like to engage. The JPA incorporates 
the task force's recommendations and more clearly communicates 
ACS Publications' policies regarding the use of submitted, 
accepted and published works.

Dr. Wendy A. Warr
Associate Editor, J. Chem. Inf. Model.
6 Berwick Court, Holmes Chapel
Cheshire, CW4 7HZ, England
jcim@warr.com