Forgive us for only just having noticed this but the Encyclopaedia Britannica has done something of a U-turn.

Having railed against user input, they’re now coming over all Wiki on us. As Silicon Valley’s The Mercury News notes, “Soon you, your family, friends – and even that nut case down the street – can publish in the venerable Encyclopedia Britannica.”

“By inviting a larger range of people to contribute and collaborate, we can produce more coverage,” says Britannica spokesman Tom Panelas.

According to Wired there will now be three type of content, entries from Britannic experts, user generated content, and the official encyclopaedia which will use elements of both.

In 2005 a Nature investigation found Wikipedia surprisingly close to Britannica in terms of the accuracy of its science entries.

Image: Getty