Abstract

Recent trends in scientific publishing towards making data as open as possible and, more generally conformant to the FAIR Principles, impact not only the later stages of the scientific research cycle (i.e., communication and publication) but also earlier stages of project planning and data production. While methodological solutions are emerging (and will likely become commonplace) commitments to open and FAIR data requires fundamentally different approaches to data management within projects and long-term data stewardship after project funding ends. Wide-spread uptake of FAIR data and services will require the coordinated participation of numerous stakeholders including trusted and neutral organizations that can provide governance on both generic infrastructure and domain-relevant community standards. Here, we provide a snapshot of the current dynamics in the scientific publishing landscape that are reshaping academic publishing. We then provide a vision for where these trends lead scientific research in general, and for research and reporting for Official Statistics in particular. We conclude that open and FAIR data will have a transformative impact on the role of Official Statistics in the data-intensive sciences.