The architect of Plan S has spoken of his ¡°disappointment¡± that US research funders refused to join the open access initiative, but has expressed hope that grass-roots pressure will lead the country to reject the subscription journal model.

Robert-Jan Smits told Times Higher Education that leading Plan S, under which participating funders will bar researchers they have supported from publishing in closed-access periodicals, had been a ¡°roller coaster¡±.

The Dutchman served as the European Commission¡¯s open access envoy during 2018 after nearly eight years as the organisation¡¯s director general of research and innovation. He has now taken up a new post as president of Eindhoven University of Technology.

¡°I could have never imagined that it would go like this and that it would get so much attention¡­What was supposed to be a quiet sabbatical became a roller coaster,¡± said Mr Smits.

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Thirteen European funding agencies backed Plan S when it was unveiled last year. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust were among key backers to follow, with expressions of support also coming from Chinese funders and the Indian government.

However, some influential sectors ¨C in particular, the US ¨C are yet to come on board.

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¡°Plan S went much quicker than people expected,¡± said Mr Smits, who conceded that he ¡°had hoped that the US would move a bit faster¡±, referring to early positive signs in discussions with the National Institutes of Health. He had also ¡°expected¡± that the Howard Hughes Medical Institute might come on board.

Critics have argued that Plan S will fail to break the domination of the subscription journal model ¨C and could potentially limit opportunities for academic collaboration around the world ¨C if it remains a largely regional initiative.

However, Mr Smits saw the University of California¡¯s decision to cancel its subscription with Elsevier as a step change in the open access debate in North America. ¡°So it¡¯s coming,¡± he said.

The first steps towards backing for Plan S will ¡°probably come not from the NIH [and] Howard Hughes¡±, but from major universities, ¡°and then of course the others might follow¡±, Mr Smits said.

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He described failure to win more US support as ¡°a little bit of a disappointment because it¡¯s one of our natural allies and it didn¡¯t work out as I had hoped¡±.

However, there is ¡°so much interest¡± from Asia and Latin America, he added. ¡°It¡¯s just a matter of reaching out to them.¡±

For Mr Smits, the Plan S ¡°chapter is closed¡±, although he will continue to follow its progress. His focus is now to ¡°define the strategy¡± for Eindhoven¡¯s future.

Locally based multinationals such as Philips, semiconductor manufacturer NXB, circuit parts manufacturer ASML and DAF Trucks create a unique environment for the institution, said Mr Smits. ¡°Which university in the whole of Europe has an innovation ecosystem like here?¡±

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¡°Here, the problem I face in the university is all of these companies are saying ¡®double your number of engineers you produce each year¡¯,¡± he said. The companies, he added, say: ¡°Grow from 12,000 [students] to 20,000 to 30,000. We need you.¡±

Mr Smits said ¡°it¡¯s far too early to say what we should do¡±, but ¡°that we will grow for sure¡±.

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john.morgan@timeshighereducation.com

University leaders, policymakers and industry leaders will discuss how research universities can sustain and support innovation ecosystems at Times Higher Education¡¯s Innovation and Impact Summit 2020, which is taking place at KTH Royal Institute of Technology from 22-24 April 2020.