Open science goes beyond conventional research practices by advocating for collaboration and broad knowledge dissemination throughout the research process, adhering to the guiding principle 'as open as possible, as closed as necessary'. This principle underscores the importance of openness while recognizing that certain restrictions may be necessary due to ethical and legal considerations. Simultaneously, it is crucial to balance fostering an open, collaborative scientific environment with the protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), which focus on incentivizing authors and promoting innovation for societal benefit. This leads to tensions between the IPR framework and the ideals of open science. “Intellectual property includes all exclusive rights to intellectual creations. It encompasses two types of rights: industrial property, which includes inventions (patents), trademarks, industrial designs and models, and designations of origin, and copyright, which covers artistic and literary property” (European Parliament, 2023). The tensions between IPRs and open science principles have been exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic, where concerns arose about IPR hindering public access to medical knowledge and vaccines.

To show respect for authors and prevent research misconduct, open data, methods, tools, and other contributions should be treated and referenced like any other scholarly work. For example, recognizing the authors of an open data set in a publication is crucial for giving proper credit to those who have contributed to the creation and sharing of the data. This can be achieved by explicitly mentioning the authors of the open data in a publication and providing details about the data set, such as its title, version, and any relevant identifiers. Utilizing persistent identifiers like Digital Object Identifiers (DOI) for open data sets ensures that the data can be easily located. Many repositories offer guidelines on how to cite datasets stored on their platforms. Additionally, checking the specific guidelines of the journal where the publication is being submitted might be helpful, as journals may have particular requirements or recommendations for acknowledging and citing open access resources. If contributors to the open data set have made substantial intellectual contributions, it might also be fair to consider including them as co-authors, particularly if the creation of the data set involved significant design, analysis, or interpretation efforts. When possible, it is advisable to communicate directly with the authors of the open data set to discuss their preferred method of acknowledgment. Giving proper credit to the authors or contributors of open access resources not only acknowledges their intellectual contributions but also fosters a culture of collaboration and ethical use of shared resources in the scientific community.

Before moving to the next step, please, read: European Commission, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, Open science and intellectual property rights – How can they better interact? – State of the art and reflections – Executive summary, Publications Office of the European Union, 2022, https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2777/347305

References

1. European Parliament. (2023). Fact Sheets on the European Union. Intellectual, industrial and commercial property. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/factsheets/en/sheet/36/intellectual-industrial-and-commercial-property