Introduction
Plan S, launched in 2018 by cOAlition S—a consortium of international research funders—represents one of the most disruptive open-access mandates in scholarly history. It requires that all scientific publications resulting from research funded by public grants must be published in compliant Open Access journals or platforms from the outset. A core pillar of this policy is the Rights Retention Strategy, which empowers authors to retain their copyrights and self-archive their manuscripts without embargo.
The Mechanics of the Rights Retention Strategy (RRS)
The Rights Retention Strategy (RRS) is designed to bypass the traditional copyright transfer agreements that publishers impose on authors. Under RRS, authors apply a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license to their Author Accepted Manuscript (AAM). By doing so, they can deposit the AAM in an institutional repository immediately upon publication, ensuring immediate green open access even if the article is published in a subscription-based journal. This strategy effectively shifts the legal leverage from the commercial publisher back to the researcher and their funding body.
Funder Compliance and the Challenge of Hybrid Journals
A central tension within Plan S is its treatment of hybrid journals—subscription journals that offer an open-access option for an additional fee. Plan S explicitly states that funders will not support APCs in hybrid journals unless they are part of a formal ‘transformative agreement’ (such as read-and-publish deals). This restriction forces institutions to rapidly negotiate country-wide transformative agreements, shifting library budgets from subscriptions to systemic open-access support.
Publisher Pushback and Legal Landscapes
Major scholarly publishers have responded to RRS with administrative and legal counter-measures. Some have updated their submission terms to prohibit the application of immediate open licenses to submitted manuscripts, creating a legal conflict for researchers caught between publisher terms and funder mandates. Addressing this friction requires institutional legal offices to declare pre-existing rights policies that take precedence over publisher copyright agreements.
Key Evaluation and Interoperability Matrix
| Compliance Pathway | Description | Author Copyright Status | Funder Financial Support |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold Open Access | Publishing directly in a fully Open Access journal or platform. | Author retains copyright (CC-BY). | Supported (APCs covered by funder/institution). |
| Green Open Access (RRS) | Publishing in subscription journal but self-archiving AAM immediately. | Author retains copyright via pre-existing CC-BY license. | No direct APC cost; supported via repository infrastructure. |
| Transformative Agreements | Publishing in a hybrid journal covered by institutional deal. | Author retains copyright under contract terms. | Supported via centralized institutional subscription-to-read-and-publish funds. |
Plan S Compliance Checklist for Principal Investigators
- Check if your funding agency is a member of cOAlition S and mandates Plan S compliance.
- Determine if your target journal is fully Open Access, transformative, or permits RRS.
- Include the mandatory cOAlition S rights retention statement in your manuscript submission.
- Apply a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY 4.0) license to your Author Accepted Manuscript.
- Deposit your accepted manuscript in an approved institutional repository immediately upon publication.
