One of the most-cited reasons against the open-access model is that authors wouldn’t pay the fees to publish their articles rather than rely on traditional methods. Open Access News has a nice post on evidence to the contrary from journals giving authors the choice.

It’s too soon to conclude one way or the other, but I believe that these opponents have overlooked the willingness of libraries and institutions to support their authors by institutional memberships as well as the fact that publication fees could easily be considered valid expenses to the grants that pay for so much of the research. Plus, a researcher’s greatest resource is his/her reputation. The point for them to get their work out there and read. Being able to send a direct link to a colleague means a far greater likelihood the article will be looked at.