GetFTR Announces Launch of Initial Pilot Implementation

In an announcement dated April 21, the publisher-driven initiative, Get Full Text Research (GetFTR) noted that five scholarly hosting platforms were actively participating in the initial pilot phase of the service. When introduced in late 2019, the GetFTR service was described as an automated solution that enabled researchers to more rapidly and reliably navigate to high-quality content made available through their institution. The five platforms that are part of this initial pilot include Dimensions, Figshare, Symplectic, Readcube Papers, and Mendeley. 

A GetFTR article link will appear next to subscription-based articles surfaced through the researcher’s preferred platform. The link provides a visual clue to the individual as to whether full text of the article is immediately available.  If the institution has licensed the material, a click on that link will navigate users to the authoritative version of the full text housed by the publisher.  Any delay created by multiple systems determining the reader’s authenticated status and access entitlement if off-campus will be minimized. Publishers that are part of the initial pilot include the American Chemical Society, Elsever, Springer Nature, Taylor & Francis and Wiley.  

As with any pilot, the intent is to get feedback on the service, monitor performance, assess its effectiveness and identify (and resolve) existing technical issues. The library community expressed concerns early on about the initiative, but the organization is committed to transparency and to ensuring that this is a cross-sector, collaborative effort. The GetFTR Advisory Board which includes information professionals, such as Elaine Westbrooks from North Carolina University -- Chapel Hill, and Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, will be monitoring the success of GetFTR’s pilot implementation.