Heads up: Nature license and confidentiality

["Rick Anderson" <rickand@unr.edu>]

Nature recently announced 
(http://www.nature.com/press_releases/NPG_opens_archives.pdf) a 
sort of modified open access to its archival content.  However, 
there's a catch: they're now asking us to sign a new version of 
the license agreement for our 2007 renewals, in order (as my new 
sales rep put it) "to guarantee that you have access if you need 
to cancel."

Most of the new license language is okay, but they now apparently 
want confidentiality for pricing and license terms.  If we agree, 
that could spell the end of public discussion of Nature's pricing 
practices.  It seems to me that we'd better all decide that we're 
not going to agree.

----
Rick Anderson
Dir. of Resource Acquisition
University of Nevada, Reno Libraries
(775) 784-6500 x273
rickand@unr.edu