CHORUS – providing a scalable solution for public access to scholarly research

Abstract

CHORUS (Clearinghouse for the Open Research of the United States) offers an open technology platform in response to the public access requirements of US federal funding agencies, researchers, institutions and the public. It is focused on five principal sets of functions: 'identification', 'preservation', 'discovery', 'access', and 'compliance' . CHORUS facilitates public access to peer-reviewed publications, after a determined embargo period (where applicable), for each discipline and agency. By leveraging existing tools such as CrossRef, FundRef and ORCID, CHORUS allows a greater proportion of funding to remain focused on research. CHORUS identifies articles that report on federally funded research and enables a reader to access the ‘best available version’ free of charge, via the publisher. It is a scalable solution that offers maximum efficiency for all parties by automating as much of the process as is possible. CHORUS launched in pilot phase in September 2013, and the production phase will begin in early 2014.