Business Models for Open Access Publishing

Matthew CockerillPublisher, BioMed Central

What is fundamentally different about an Open Access

publishing business model?

Traditional research publishing

The research community transfers the rights to the research to the publisher

The publisher covers its costs by selling access to the content

Open Access research publishing

There are no barriers to access The publisher generally does not

acquire any exclusive rights Typically the publisher is paid for

the service of publication

Revenue streams for open access publishers

Publication fees– From authors– From meeting organizers– From sponsoring organizations

Subscription content (e.g. reviews) Services (e.g. Open Repository) Advertising Implicit/explicit subsidy

BioMed Central journals which do not charge author fees

Chinese MedicineChiropractic & OsteopathyItalian Journal of PediatricsJournal of Biomedical ScienceJournal of Brachial Plexus and Peripheral Nerve InjuryJournal of Orthopaedic Surgery and ResearchJournal of the International AIDS SocietyScandinavian Journal of Trauma, Resuscitation and Emergency MedicineSports Medicine, Arthroscopy, Rehabilitation, Therapy & Technology

Some journals operate mixed models

Author’s pay publication fee for research articles

DFG funding covers cost of additional articles

BioMed Central journal’s with additional subscription content

Coming soon…

Examples of additional services

A hosted digital repository solution

Integration ensures articles published in OA journals can

easily be included

Advertising?

Some potential editors ask: “can we support a journal entirely with advertising?”

Unlikely - advertising is tiny fraction of BioMed Central’s revenue

OA Publication Fees

Putting Open Access fees in the context of the traditional system

Top-down and bottom-up analyses come to similar conclusionAverage publisher revenue per STM article is around £3000 ($4700)

What do OA publication fees cover?

Open access publishing has most of the same costs as the traditional system:– Editorial– Technical– Production– Customer services– Marketing (e.g. conference attendance)

OA publication fees

BioMed Central $780-$2100 Public Library of Science $1300-$2850 Company of Biologists $3100 Oxford University Press $3000 Royal Society ~$3000 Springer $3000 Taylor & Francis $3250 Wiley $3000

How do OA publication fees get paid?

Authors may pay out of grant funds Some funders provide dedicated funds

for open access publishing costs Institutions may cover costs centrally

(via open access funds and/or membership arrangements with OA publishers)

Some journals are run by organizations which cover costs themselves

BioMed Central membership

Prepay membership– Institution pays funds into a deposit account– Article Processing Charge is covered by funds from

account– Discount depending on deposit amount– Author does not have to pay– Simplified administration/reporting

Supporter membership– Institutions pay a flat fee– Authors pay a discounted Article Processing Charge

How are BioMed Central articles paid for?

Can the open access model work for high-rejection rate journals?

Submission fees?

Submission fees are often proposed as a means to make high-rejection rate journals economically feasible under OA

However, charging a fee for the service of rejection problematic

Peer review cascade

Highrejection rate

Moderaterejection rate

Lowrejection rate

Advantages of this approach

Avoids delays for authors Avoids saddling academics with repeated peer

review of less interesting papers, wasting a precious resource

Separates question of soundness of research from level of interest– Soundness determines whether to publish– Interest determines where to publish

For the publisher, high-prestige, high rejection rate titles are magnets for research articles

This approach is becoming increasingly prevalent

PLoS Nature Cell Neuroscience Peer

Review Consortium

How can institutions help to make the open access model

work?

Institutional policy on the payment of OA fees

Publication fees are not just a matter for libraries, but are a strategic issue for the institution as a whole

A senior member of the institution should take ownership and coordinate activities

Institutions need to work hard to communicate policy to researchers

Centrally managed funds for Open Access publication charges

Aarhus Berkeley Calgary Harvard

(part of plan for Office of Scholarly Communication)

Nottingham

Is the Open Access business model viable?

Growth of OA publishing in BioMed Central’s journals

Established journals are switching to the open access model in increasing numbers

Open Access publishing,then and now…

20082000

And more…

A new industry association

Goals of OASPA

Represent interests of Open Access publishers as a group

Agree common definition of Open Access Establish and enforce good standards of

editorial and business practices amongst members

Identify guidelines and best practices for publishers and institutions in managing payment of publication fees

Springer’s acquisition of BioMed Central

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Springer acquisition FAQs Will BioMed Central’s policy of open access to all

research continue?Yes – this was an obligatory condition for the deal to gain approval by BioMed Central’s Board of Trustees

Is BioMed Central profitable?Springer bought BioMed Central because it is a healthy publishing business, in a growing sector of the market

Will BioMed Central APCs be increased to Springer Open Choice levels?There are no plans to change BioMed Central’s APC pricing policy as a result of the deal

Experimental institutional Open Access deals at Springer

Several institutions/consortia now have licensing deals with Springer allow their authors to select the Open Choice option without additional payment– Max Planck– UKB (Dutch consortium)– Georg-August University of Goettingen

The University of California has publicly stated that it is working on a similar deal with Springer for its campuses.