Access to academic libraries: an indicator of openness?

Open access to digital research output is increasing, but academic library policies can place restrictions on public access to collections. This paper reports on a preliminary study to investigate the correlation between academic library access policies and institutional positions of openness to knowledge. The results show that academic library policies may suggest open public access, but multi-layered user categories, privileges and fees charged can inhibit access, with disparities in openness emerging between library policies and institutional open access policies.