From: Joseph Esposito <[log in to unmask]> Date: Sun, 27 Sep 2015 14:40:27 -0400 Surely there is a dose of irony in Ann's "not a hero" formulation? As though being a business innovator is not enough???? No one, of course, should be required to explain their** jokes, so it is understandable that our beloved moderator may choose to remain silent. **After much teeth-grinding, I have determined that "their" as a singular is less of a mouthful than "his or her." Joe Esposito On Sun, Sep 27, 2015 at 1:38 PM, LIBLICENSE <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > From: Richard Poynder <[log in to unmask]> > Date: Fri, 25 Sep 2015 11:31:44 +0100 > > Thanks for commenting Ann. Two points: > > First, it is possible that Tracz’s position is not quite as > straightforward as your anecdote suggests. It’s true he sometimes > describes himself as just "a publisher and a businessman”. At other > times, however, he presents himself in a somewhat different light. > Speaking to me in in 2005 he said that while it is nice to be wealthy, > he is “perfectly happy not to have money”. What motivates him, he told > me, is undertaking projects that are “difficult to do and > complicated”. > > In 2002, in an interview with Daryl Rayner, Tracz said that he doesn't > even know how to interpret a balance sheet. And speaking to me in the > wake of the sale of BMC he said, “I took horrendous risks, and I was > not at all sure that it would ever make financial sense. It was an > ethical issue, and I was intrigued by the complexities of it.” > > That said, the real puzzle is why Tracz’s business concerns appear to > be so complex, with his various ventures enveloped in a web of > interlocked companies, many of which seem ultimately to lead to > concerns based in places like Switzerland and Cyprus. > > Second, I am struck at your implication that OA advocates don’t value > smart, strategic business innovators, or that they see a fundamental > contradiction between open access and business motivations. Is that > your view, or am I misunderstanding what you said? > > Richard > > > On 25 September 2015 at 02:14, LIBLICENSE <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > > > From: Ann Shumelda Okerson <[log in to unmask]> > > Date: Thu, 24 Sep 2015 21:10:50 -0400 > > > > Agree with Jean-Claude but for a different reason. Early in the last > > decade, I was part of a librarian focus group invited to London to > > meet with Tracz to talk about about BioMed Central. There may have > > been 15-20 of us in the room, and a number were passionate open access > > advocates. When asked if he were pursuing this idea because of a > > powerful conviction/passion for open access, Tracz said clearly that > > he is a publisher and businessman, one who sees in open access a solid > > business opportunity -- which would also help on the access side. > > Many hearts fell and many spirits sagged, for indeed there had been an > > expectation of meeting an open access "hero," but here instead was a > > smart, strategic business innovator. > > > > Ann Okerson/CRL