Clarivate Plc (NYSE: CLVT), a global leader in providing trusted information and insights to accelerate the pace of innovation, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) today released “Research Fronts 2021” report, to identify the hottest and emerging areas in the world of scientific research. This is the eighth annual collaborative report between the two parties and it was launched at a joint forum today in Beijing.

“Research Fronts 2021” identified 171 research fronts, including 110 hot and 61 emerging fronts in 11 broad research areas in sciences and social sciences. Research Fronts are formed when clusters of highly cited papers are frequently cited together, reflecting a specific commonality in the research – sometimes experimental data, a method, a concept or a hypothesis. Around one third of the Research Fronts identified this year are related to COVID-19. These include six among the top 10 Research Fronts in clinical medicine and three among the top 10 Research Fronts in biological sciences. The research being produced in these areas is instrumental to the fight against the disease and will have enormous impact on the world.

Working in collaboration with the Institute of Science and Development and the National Science Library, both affiliated with CAS, bibliometric experts from Clarivate utilized the Essential Science Indicators (ESI)™ database which is built on the foundation of the Web of Science™ index to conduct co-citation analysis. The 2021 report starts with 12,147 Research Fronts in ESI from 2015 to 2020 and aims to discover which Research Fronts were most active or developing most rapidly. Analysts at CAS analyzed the 171 Research Fronts in great depth and interpreted them to highlight 31 key Research Fronts and two key Research Fronts groups.

“It has been our pleasure and privilege to collaborate with the Chinese Academy of Sciences on this important Research Fronts report for the past eight consecutive years.  Its content guides us to look to the future of research and demonstrates Clarivate’s vision to improve the way the world creates, protects and advances innovation,” said Steen Lomholt-Thomsen, Chief Revenue Officer of Clarivate. “We are incredibly proud of the increasing influence this report has achieved over the years – not only in China but also in the other parts of the world.”

Gao Hongjun, Vice President of CAS said: “Research Fronts 2021 is an important collaborative achievement, launched globally by Institute of Science and Development of CAS, the National Science Library of CAS and Clarivate. Basic research is the foundation of CAS. We have started strategic research programs including ‘Study and analysis on China’s major scientific and technological breakthrough that may impact the future global landscape’, in a move to better understand the future direction and focus of science and technology. We will leverage our research resources to make better forward-looking analysis on China’s key breakthrough in science and technology that may affect the future of the world, as well as better support China’s strategic plan in scientific and technological innovation.”

In conjunction with the Research Fronts 2021 report, Clarivate and CAS also published “2021 Research Fronts: Active Fields, Leading Countries”, which examines and compares national performance across the 171 Research Fronts. It reveals that the US remains the leading nation for research in 11 areas of sciences and social sciences, followed by China. The gap between the US and China has been reduced. Other top 10 countries in terms of performance in these  Research Fronts are UK, Germany, Italy, France, Australia, Canada, Spain and the Netherlands.

Levels of COVID-19 research data sharing have remained low during the pandemic, and preprinting of research on the virus has been lower than two initiatives tried to ensure it would be. This is according to a new report that examines the effectiveness of initiatives taken by players in the research ecosystem to promote sharing of COVID-19 research by stepping up open science approaches.

While the efforts of scientific publishers and the research community have speeded up publication times for COVID-19 research, and made much of it freely accessible, more effort is needed if society is to truly benefit from open science, the Scholarly Communication in Times of Crisis: The response of the scholarly communication system to the COVID-19 pandemic report says.

The sharing of the SARS-CoV-2 genome is seen as the poster child for open science, and the pandemic held up as a turning point for open science. Yet the report finds this has only partly been realised. It makes a series of key recommendations, three of which focus on opening up data, encouraging preprinting and strengthening collaboration across the scholarly communication ecosystem:

• Only joint efforts will improve the availability and quality of research data sharing. Common data policy templates should be developed to require data sets and software to be posted to a trusted, FAIR-enabling repository, and to require formal citations to data sets and software.
• Mandating preprinting and rewarding researchers who use preprints could shift the needle.  Publishers should include posting of preprints in their submission workflows and leaders should advocate for preprints.
• Publishers and other scholarly communication organisations should intensify their joint efforts to improve the availability and quality of data and metadata on scholarly publishing, allowing for robust evidence-informed approaches to innovation in scholarly communication.

The report concludes that there is no magic bullet to improving scholarly communication. It is a joint responsibility that requires collaboration and coordinated action across stakeholders in the research system.

Early in 2020 a Wellcome-coordinated COVID-19 statement, signed by over 30 publishers, called for open or free access to all COVID-19 publications for the duration of the pandemic; for COVID-19 papers to be made available via preprint servers prior to journal publication; and data from COVID-19 research to be shared as early as possible.

A second initiative, launched by a group of publishers and related organisations, the COVID-19 Rapid Review Initiative, worked on implementing the commitments made in the Wellcome-coordinated COVID-19 statement and aimed to accelerate peer review of COVID-19 papers.

Scholarly Communication in Times of Crisis: The response of the scholarly communication system to the COVID-19 pandemic has been written by a team comprising researchers, publishers, and other scholarly communication experts, all associated with the COVID-19 Rapid Review Initiative. It presents the results of research undertaken by the team and reviews research conducted by others, with a view to identify opportunities for the scholarly communication stakeholders to effect change that will extend beyond the pandemic and have long-lasting benefits.

The authors also conclude that obtaining robust evidence on the response of the scholarly communication system to the COVID-19 pandemic is challenging. Relevant publishing data is often not available or is of limited quality. To enable robust evidence-informed approaches to innovation in scholarly communication, joint efforts to improve the availability and quality of this type of data are needed.

Ludo Waltman, Associate Director, Research on Research Institute (RoRI) and Professor of Quantitative Science Studies,  Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) at Leiden University says: “Development of innovative new forms of peer review, for instance by @PREreview_ and @mitpress @RapidReviewsC19, is extremely important and deserves further attention from all relevant actors in the system. I hope that the pandemic will be an impetus for more innovation in this area.”

Stephen Pinfield, Associate Director, Research on Research Institute (RoRI) and Professor of Information Services Management, University of Sheffield says: “Approaches adopted during the pandemic have powerfully illustrated the benefits of openness. It is important that we apply those lessons in future to improve the scholarly communication system for the benefit of the research community and society more generally.”

From 13.00 Central European Time the report will be available at: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.17125394 

Clarivate plc, a global leader in providing trusted information and insights to accelerate the pace of innovation, has completed its acquisition of ProQuest – a leading global software, content, data and analytics provider. This succeeds the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, following a commitment to acquire the business from the Cambridge Information Group and other investors, announced on May 17, 2021.

Jerre Stead, Executive Chairman and CEO, Clarivate, said: “We are delighted to complete this transaction, advancing our position as a world-leading information and analytics provider fueling discovery and innovation by empowering research-focused organizations around the globe. Acquiring ProQuest gives Clarivate a compelling opportunity to offer multi-disciplinary curated content from one of the world’s largest collections and best of breed SaaS software solutions serving our strategic partners at governments, corporations, academia and public libraries across the globe.”

He continued, “Both companies are built on great people with deep industry, subject matter and technical expertise. Together, we now have over 11,000 colleagues serving 45,000 customers in 200-plus countries around the world. Our future success depends on unlocking the tremendous potential of our newly united team.”

Also announced today in a separate news release and in conjunction with the closing of the merger, Clarivate announced that Jonathan Collins will be replacing Richard Hanks as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Hanks will remain with Clarivate until April 1 to support the CFO transition. See the other news release for additional details.

As previously announced, with the closing of the transaction, two members of the ProQuest Board of Directors are joining the Clarivate Board: Andy Snyder, who will have the position of Vice Chairman of the Clarivate Board, and Michael Angelakis, who is Chairman and CEO of Atairos.

Andy Snyder, Vice Chairman, Clarivate, (previously Chairman of ProQuest) and CEO of Cambridge Information Group, said: “I’m confident that combining these highly complementary businesses with a rich heritage, deep domain expertise and great people will provide customers with great additional value and innovation that they can continue to rely on. I’m looking forward to working with both organizations to build a world leader in research and innovation.”

Both businesses share a goal to accelerate innovation through research and knowledge sharing. Clarivate will continue to invest in both existing product portfolios and looks forward to pursuing multiple product and data integration opportunities. These will provide customers with the ability to reveal multi-disciplinary connections across the innovation lifecycle, as they seek to solve the world’s most complex challenges.

Find the full press release here: https://clarivate.com/news/clarivate-successfully-completes-acquisition-of-proquest

Global research and education leader Wiley today announced the acquisition of Knowledge Unlatched, an innovator in online open access solutions.

The open access movement promises to make more research broadly available to democratize information and to accelerate academic discovery. As the market for open access publishing grows, libraries and publishers are increasingly challenged to manage new workflows. Knowledge Unlatched helps libraries and publishers reduce complexity through seamless online services to approve, pay, and manage their open access transactions and maximize the impact of library budgets to make more content open access.

“Wiley and Knowledge Unlatched share a commitment to making open access simple and easy for everyone,” said Jay Flynn, Wiley Executive Vice President & General Manager, Research. “By investing in the future of Knowledge Unlatched, we’re deepening our commitment to an open future.”

“Wiley’s record as a leader in open access, combined with their extensive network of partners and customers, will accelerate Knowledge Unlatched’s growth and ability to innovate,” said Sven Fund, Knowledge Unlatched Managing Director, who will continue to lead the business within Wiley’s Research organization.

With the acquisition of Knowledge Unlatched, Wiley continues to build on an acquisition strategy that advances its mission to unlock human potential. Recent acquisitions of J&J Editorial, Hindawi, Madgex and Atypon underscore the company’s commitment to deliver innovative products and services that enable discovery, power education and shape workforces.

Growth in digital helped Cambridge University Press serve its global customers and successfully navigate the pandemic ahead of its integration with Cambridge Assessment

• Report covers the 15 months leading up to its integration with Cambridge Assessment to become Cambridge University Press & Assessment
• Rapid increase in use of digital products and services helped to deliver a robust financial performance
• Showcases how the organisation worked with Cambridge Assessment to help teachers, learners and researchers around the world navigate the disruption caused by COVID-19

Cambridge University Press recorded a robust financial performance ahead of its integration with Cambridge Assessment in August this year, driven by its investment in innovative digital products and services to serve its global customer base. 

In its last annual report, covering the 15 months from May 2020 to July 2021 and published this month, the Press recorded rapid growth in digital sales – partly driven by the pandemic – which helped to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 on revenues.

Sales were £384 million in the period, compared with £336 million in the 12 months of 2019/20. The reporting period was longer than usual as the Press adjusted its financial year-end to match the rest of the University of Cambridge, including Cambridge Assessment.

Operating profits in the 15-month period were £20.7m compared to £23.6m in the 12 months of 2019/20, with the strength of the pound against a number of other currencies holding back revenues and profits.

Peter Phillips, the Chief Executive of Cambridge University Press & Assessment, said: “This report covers a period of extraordinary challenges and achievements, starting as the full force of the pandemic hit customers and colleagues, and ending positively as we came together as a single organisation with Cambridge Assessment.

“Our achievements included a significant acceleration in our shift to delivering products and services digitally to meet the needs of teachers, learners and researchers around the globe, with customers dramatically increasing their use of our online platforms.”

He added: “Ahead of our formal integration we also delivered on important projects to deepen the partnership between the two organisations.”

Key elements included the launch of:

• online and digital projects focused on improving reach and flexibility, such as Cambridge GO!, which consolidates access to all of our digital Education services, alongside IELTS Indicator, Test & Train and English Adventures for English language learners, computer-based versions of our popular occupational English tests, and powerful digital platforms to drive greater open access for researchers
• the formation of the Cambridge Partnership for Education, which advises governments and non-governmental organisations on education reform
• and the launch of new curriculum and learning materials for primary and lower secondary students.

Peter Phillips said: “It is significant that the increasing move to digital played such a big part in the story of those 15 months. The pandemic quickened the uptake of digital learning, accelerating a shift that was already well underway.

“The revolution in digital communications saw the Press and Cambridge Assessment evolve naturally into shared territory to meet the needs of teachers, learners and researchers, and as a single organisation we can offer customers the full range of products and services they want from Cambridge.”

He added: “Cambridge University Press & Assessment embodies the core strengths of both the Press and Cambridge Assessment – commitment, passion, skill and creativity. Those qualities have been clearly in evidence in our response to the pandemic and the performance recorded in this annual report is further testament to that.”

Figshare, Digital Science, and Springer Nature’s annual State of Open Data report finds increasing concern among researchers about misuse of data as well as a lack of credit and acknowledgement for those who do openly share their data. 

Among the key findings, 55% feel they need support in regard to copyright and licenses when making research data openly available, and 73% strongly or somewhat support the idea of a national mandate for making research data openly available. At the same time, 65% of respondents have never received credit or acknowledgement for sharing data. 

The State of Open Data report is in its sixth year, and more than 4,200 researchers responded from around the world, providing detailed and prolonged insight into motivations, challenges, perceptions, and behaviors toward open data. It builds on a strong body of evidence that confirms one of the main barriers to data sharing is lack of credit and acknowledgement.

Primary motivations for data sharing are tied to traditional measurements of impact and credit, with 19% of respondents motivated by citation of their research papers, 14% by co-authorship on papers, 11% by increased impact and visibility of research, and 11% on public benefit. 

Despite concerns over misuse of data and licensing, 66% of respondents had heard of the FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable) data principles, which were established five years ago, with 28% responding that they are familiar with them, the highest number since this question was first asked in 2018. More than half of respondents (54%) thought their data was very much or somewhat compliant with the FAIR data principles, also the highest number since this question was first asked in 2018. These findings indicate that concern over sharing data could lessen in the long run if data are as accessible and reusable as possible.

Mark Hahnel, CEO and Founder of Figshare, says: “Over the last six years we have had over 21,000 responses from researchers to our annual survey of open data. This year the message we heard very clearly from respondents concerned a lack of acknowledgement for data sharing. Researchers want to share, but the current system does not incentivise it and they additionally need support to understand licensing and copyright. Providing the training and support will help but only by addressing the way academics are rewarded can we move to a world where data is more openly shared.”

Eugenie Regan, Vice President, Research Solutions, Springer Nature said: “These surveys have provided an essential benchmark in addressing where researchers feel the benefits in data sharing and where the gaps and concerns still remain. Whilst year-on-year progress can be seen in some areas, researcher concerns still remain around credit, data misuse and support around copyright and licensing. To move to a truly open research environment, we as a community need to get better at taking concrete steps to drive forward appropriate measures to better support our research community. Springer Nature is firmly committed to this and we continue to work closely with our partners, such as Figshare and Digital Science, to better develop solutions and understanding around data sharing together.”