Open Science

Your guide to Open Access publishing and Open Science

Tag: subscription
Journal sales, November 30, 2006 | © Courtesy of HeatherLWilliams/Flickr.

A Global Transition to Open Access May Be Stalemated by Standoffs between Publishers and University Libraries

On the background of Springer Nature’s stalled stock market launch, global journal publishers, such as Elsevier, could be digging in their heels in their negotiations with university associations over periodical subscription deals, as revenues and profit growth rates sag, while arguably slowing the expansion of the Open Access sector. A Blog Article by Pablo Markin. A closer look into the annual report for 2017 of RELX Group, to which Elsevier, a globally operating journal publisher belongs, reveals that while its scientific, technical and medical analytics business remains the most important source of its revenue, its growth rate was found to […]

Openaire-COAR Conference 2014, Athens, Greece, May 21, 2014 | © Courtesy of cziwkga/Flickr.

Though Journal Subscription Deal Cancellations Increase in Number, Open Access Solutions Remain Marginal

For many universities unbundling their journal subscription deals can yield significant cost reductions, which, however, can solidify the market shares of large publishers and slow the growth of the Open Access sector, especially as concerns Gold Open Access journals. A Blog Article by Pablo Markin. As university libraries scrutinize their yearly journal subscription deals, the unbundling of these agreements for the purpose of reducing the number of titles subscribed can provide significant subscription discounts for expenses that can exceed 1 million USD on a yearly basis for some institutions. While in North America circa 24 libraries have either unbundled or […]

Rathaus-Glockenspiel, Munich, Bavaria, Germany, March 31, 2012 © Courtesy of Nicole June/Flickr.

Europe’s Journal Subscription Deals are Slow to Include Article Processing Charges into their Open Access Provisions

A recent research report sheds light on reasons for recent stand-offs between European universities, research institutions and large international publishers, as extant journal subscription contracts overwhelmingly fail to cover article processing charges publishing in Open Access involves. A Blog Article by Pablo Markin. As a review article by David Matthews, which appeared on April 11, 2018, suggests, journal subscriptions represent the bulk of the 421 million Euros that European universities have spent on subscription deals for database, e-book and journal access in 2016 and 2017. Namely, based on empirical data for 66 contracts with publishers, the 2018 European University Association’s […]

Delft, South Holland, Netherlands, September 19, 2012 © Courtesy of দেবর্ষি রায়/Flickr.

Open Access Offers Financial Sustainability, as Publishers Increasingly Combine Article Publishing and Access in Deals

For research university libraries faced with dwindling budgets and rising costs integrating Open Access into their journal subscription can assist with negotiating better contract conditions, especially since recent studies suggest that academic faculty consult recent studies less intensively than assumed. A Blog Article by Pablo Markin. As universities seek to reduce the financial burden associated with higher education for their students by slashing library use fees, journal subscription budgets are likely to be further squeezed, as funding gaps widen. In other words, as universities and libraries experience budget cuts, shouldering growing scientific journal subscription costs ceases to be sustainable. In […]

Session One: Work And Society, Isabelle Daugareilh, Director of Research, Centre national de la recherche scientifique, Geneva, Switzerland, April 6, 2017 © Courtesy of Marcel Crozet/International Labour organization (ILO)/Flickr.

French Academic and Research Institutions Refuse to Pay Climbing Journal Subscription Fees, Opt for De Facto Open Access

In France, circa 100 research organizations close ranks by putting their journal subscription negotiations with Springer in abeyance, while insisting on Open Access policies and retaining access to its journal titles, as no agreement between the publisher and these French scholarly institutions was reached. A Blog Article by Pablo Markin. French higher education institutions and research centers claim to gain multi-million journal subscription savings after refusing a sign toll-based journal access deal with Springer Nature, according to a news item by David Matthews appearing on April 9, 2018. In the meanwhile, the publisher has refrained from cutting off the access […]

Doe Memorial Library, University of California, Alameda, California, USA, July 22, 2013 © Courtesy of Sharat Ganapati/Flickr.

Multiple Transition Pathways to Open Access Can Equally Anchor the Status of Scientific Knowledge as a Public Good

Though press coverage tends to treat Gold Open Access as the goal of Open Science, a recent report by the University of California Libraries systematically reflects on alternative avenues for transitioning to Open Access as a bundle of different approaches and strategies that academic and research institutions can deploy to switch to Open Access. A Blog Article by Pablo Markin. As university- and country-level transitions to Open Access become increasingly contemplated, especially in developing countries, such as Peru, that cannot necessarily sustain the growing burden of journal subscription expenses and without international aide can be cut off from vital scientific […]