Elsevier is committed to transparent, compliant use and reuse of 3rd party content

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Elsevier works regularly with 3rd party content providers (CPs) to index content and make the data available in databases, data services, and on platforms.

As part of our commitment to transparent, compliant use and reuse of 3rd party content, Elsevier has undertaken initiatives to define and communicate its Governance of rights and Trustworthy Partner approach. This is an approach that enables structured governance of legal compliance across different content types (e.g., books, journals).

This approach ensures that Elsevier is a trusted partner for CPs; it also improves the customer journey for those CPs which results in more speedily available content for customers to use in our solutions.

The reasons for defining and communicating the Governance of rights and Trustworthy Partner approach are the following:

• Reinforcing our trusted partner approach provides an opportunity to:
  • define and communicate content access and data reuse rights and restrictions to our CPs.
  • offer transparency to our CPs and provide ample opportunity for dialogue if concerns arise.
• Putting ourselves in our CP’ shoes allows us to understand and anticipate their needs and challenges (i.e., we know they want to feel understood, respected, valued, delighted, confident). As such, we have designed an engagement journey that helps to accelerate data growth.
• Simplicity and Speed for our CPs:
  • We have brought together a range of state-of-the-art technologies to optimize our Content Partners’ engagement journey. This results in:
    • Seamless integration of data (automation for rights validation).
    • Agile licensing processes: increase contracting speed, simplify the negotiation process through amendments (improved customer experience).

What does this mean for our customers?

By offering transparency around content access and data reuse rights and restrictions to our CPs; creating an engagement journey with CPs that helps to accelerate data growth; and optimizing the processes by which we can license and integrate our CPs data, there is increased confidence and trust from our CPs in our content and data; and easier and more transparent processes for CPs to upload content and data.

As a result, our customers and users can enjoy faster content growth and faster speed to indexing of content throughout our solutions.

Examples of this approach in practice:

Example 1 - Scopus Acceptance and Permissions – Content type: journals (title-based approach)

• When a publisher’s title is accepted into Scopus, Elsevier initiates the “engagement journey” by assigning the publisher an Elsevier Engagement Manager (EM), who is the main point of contact and assists them through the whole journey (onboarding and post-onboarding). The Engagement Manager promptly sends a welcome letter outlining next steps; confirms content delivery preferences; and ensures that permission is in place to index the title.

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*Note: Some titles may follow a slightly a different process if they are available under a CC-BY license or are part of a large portfolio covered by a special license

• In addition, Elsevier provides a clear explanation of “How we use your content”, safeguarding the content provided by the provider: “We require access to the full text of your publication for indexing purposes only (e.g. to capture keywords, affiliations and references, etc). We never provide the full text to our users or other third parties. We always link users back to the CP  online platform to access the full text, our coverage can therefore contribute to an increase in user traffic to your own platform.”

Example 2 – Scopus Acceptance and Permissions – Content type: standalone books (publisher-based approach)

• Book selection is carried out via a publisher-based approach (no individual book suggestions are considered). A dedicated team (not the Content Selection and Advisory Board [CSAB]) reviews all submissions once per year. For those selected publishers, all books deemed "in scope " will be covered.

• When a publisher is accepted for coverage in Scopus, Elsevier initiates the “engagement journey” driven by dedicated Elsevier Publisher Relations Manager (PRMs), who is the main point of contact and assists the publisher through the whole journey (onboarding and post-onboarding). The Publisher Relations Manager promptly sends a welcome letter outlining next steps; ensure that a license is in place to index the title; and confirms the technical efeed setup for content delivery purposes.

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• Likewise, Elsevier provides a clear explanation of “How we use your content”, emphasizing why the full text (FT) is required, reinsuring that FT is never displayed and how we contribute to further boost traffic to your platforms (where the FT is available to view or purchase).