Individuation through infrastructure : Get Full Text Research, data extraction and the academic publishing oligopoly

Samuel Moore

doi:10.1108/JD-06-2020-0090

Individuation through infrastructure : Get Full Text Research, data extraction and the academic publishing oligopoly

Samuel Moore

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

11 Citations (Scopus)

173 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Purpose: This article explores the recent turn within academic publishing towards ‘seamless access’, an approach to content provision that ensures users do not have to continually authenticate in order to access journal content. Design/methodology/approach: Through a critical exploration of Get Full Text Research, a service developed collaboratively by five of the world's largest academic publishers to provide such seamless access to academic research, the article shows how publishers are seeking to control the ways in which readers access publications in order to trace, control and ultimately monetise user interactions on their platforms. Findings: Theorised as a process of individuation through infrastructure, the article reveals how publishers are attempting an ontological shift to position the individual, quantifiable researcher, rather than the published content, at the centre of the scholarly communication universe. Originality/value: The implications of the shift towards individuation are revealed as part of a broader trend in scholarly communication infrastructure towards data extraction, mirroring a trend within digital capitalism more generally.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	129-141
Number of pages	13
Journal	Journal of Documentation
Volume	77
Issue number	1
Early online date	28 Jul 2020
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-06-2020-0090
Publication status	Published - 4 Jan 2021

Bibliographical note

Copyright © and Moral Rights are retained by the author(s) and/ or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This item cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder(s). The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders.

Keywords

Digital libraries
Libraries
Publishing
Data
Electronic journals
Electronic publishing

Access to Document

10.1108/JD-06-2020-0090

Post-PrintAccepted author manuscript, 384 KBLicence: Unspecified

Cite this

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abstract = "Purpose: This article explores the recent turn within academic publishing towards {\textquoteleft}seamless access{\textquoteright}, an approach to content provision that ensures users do not have to continually authenticate in order to access journal content. Design/methodology/approach: Through a critical exploration of Get Full Text Research, a service developed collaboratively by five of the world's largest academic publishers to provide such seamless access to academic research, the article shows how publishers are seeking to control the ways in which readers access publications in order to trace, control and ultimately monetise user interactions on their platforms. Findings: Theorised as a process of individuation through infrastructure, the article reveals how publishers are attempting an ontological shift to position the individual, quantifiable researcher, rather than the published content, at the centre of the scholarly communication universe. Originality/value: The implications of the shift towards individuation are revealed as part of a broader trend in scholarly communication infrastructure towards data extraction, mirroring a trend within digital capitalism more generally.",

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