Webinar - UN Consortium (February 7, 2013) Presenter: Jose de Buerba, Sr. Publishing Officer, Marketing Manager, the World Bank Links: http://wrld.bg/wvwOK http://openknowledge.worldbank.org

1. World Bank Open Access Policy
Challenges and Opportunities
Jose de Buerba, Sr. Publishing Officer, The World Bank
Webinar - UN Consortium
February 7, 2013

2. Traditional World Bank Publication’s
Dissemination Model
• Commercial distribution model, working with a network
of print and online distributors around the world
• Steep discounts to customers in developing countries
• Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia were second and
third largest markets measured in number of copies sold
• Free e-book dissemination through Bank web site,
Google Books and social reading sites
• Sustainable business model from a combination of Bank
budget, publishing services and revenues from sales
If it isn’t broken, why fix it?
… it needed realignment

3. “We need to do development differently”
Robert B. Zoellick, Former President, The World Bank Group
New Direction: Democratizing Development
We need to throw open the doors, recognizing that others can
find and create their own solutions. And this open research
revolution is underway. We need to recognize that
development knowledge is no longer the sole province of the
researcher, the scholar, or the ivory tower.
The aim is to open the treasure chest of the World Bank’s
data and knowledge to every village health care worker,
every researcher, everyone.
Georgetown University, September 2010

4. Open About
What We Know
(Data and Knowledge)
Open About
What We Do
(Operations and
Results)
Open About
How We Work
(Partnerships for
Openness)
Open
Government
(Transparency,
Accountability)
T H E WO R L D B A N K O P E N AG E N DA
Embracing Openness

5. Open Access
Policy
Creative
Commons
Open
Knowledge
Repository
Strategic Review of
World Bank Publishing
or

6. Open Access Policy
Scope:
• Applies to manuscripts and accompanying data sets that:
(a) that result from research, analysis, economic and sector work, or
development practice;
(b) that have undergone peer review or have been otherwise vetted and
approved for release to the public; and
(c) for which approval for release is given on or after July 1, 2012.
Requirements:
1. For works published by the Bank
− Available immediately in OKR
− Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY)
2. For works by Bank staff published externally (mostly papers)
‒ Working paper available immediately in OKR under CC BY
‒ Final, peer-reviewed manuscript, available in OKR after Publisher's
embargo under CC BY NC ND (unless more liberal license is accepted)

7. Why an Open Access Policy?
• To provide greater access to Bank research and
knowledge outputs
• To encourage innovation allowing use and re-use
(i.e., derivative works, translations, etc.)
• To join a growing Open Access community (e.g.,
governments, universities, and other institutions)
• To align Bank’s Publishing with Bank’s Open
Development Agenda

8. Four Comparative Advantages
1. Optimal Discoverability:
• Interoperable with other repositories
• Adherence to Open Access standards (Dublin Core
metadata and OAI-PMH)
• Systematic metadata curation process
2. Intuitive Interface:
• Several browse options, advanced search, most viewed
content, citation information, permanent links, etc.
• Built on Dspace - OA platform
3. Allows Use, Reuse and Building-on Bank’s Work:
• CC BY copyright license
4. New Content:
• Content published by external Publishers

9. 586,120 Downloads (57% developed, 43% developing countries)
1 million downloads projected for first year
Total Downloads

11. New World Bank Publication’s
Dissemination Approach
• Free and unrestricted online dissemination
• OKR, Google Books, Scribd and ISSUU - Key channels
• Social media fully integrated in the marketing-mix
reaching an engaged community of 100k.+
• Direct-to-reader - Less reliance on intermediaries
• Decentralized print-on-demand book distribution through
five regional hubs strategically located near the demand
• Leverage commercial opportunities providing they add
value (most content is free, added-value is not)

12. Social Media Audience
CY12 Growth
15,000
17,000
19,000
21,000
23,000
25,000
27,000
Jan Feb March April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
Twitter Followers
# of total
Twitter
followers
35000
37000
39000
41000
43000
45000
47000
49000
51000
Facebook Likes
Lifetime
Total
Likes

13. Social Media Engagement
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
Jan Feb March April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
Facebook Monthly Engagement
Monthly
Engagement
Linear (Monthly
Engagement)

14. What about the Business Model?
1. Budget support from the institution
2. Income from authoring units
→ Author-pays model
3. Revenues from commercial activity
→ Freemium option for added value services
World Bank eLibrary

15. The Currency of
Open Access Publishing

16. Challenges
• Negotiating ( and implementing) OA publishing
agreements with Academic Publishers
• Changing author behavior for adhering to OA policy and
posting content in repository
• Adoption of Creative Commons (for some IGOs)
• Declining revenues as a result of free dissemination –
more reliance on Bank budget and publishing fees
• Positioning eLibrary and paid channels vis-a-via free
content offerings (e.g., OKR)
• Measuring and tracking usage and impact

17. Next Steps
• Network with, and learn from, the OA community
• Partner with other institutions for repository
interoperability
 South-South knowledge exchange
 South-North knowledge exchange
• Develop Open Educational Resources
• Advocate for Open Access
• Where we can add value, help develop OA capacity

18. Jose de Buerba, Sr. Publishing Officer
The World Bank
jdebuerba@worldbank.org