Open Publishing

Title: Open Access Publishing : An Initial Discussion of Income Source, Scholarly Journals, and Publishers

Source: Panayiota Polydoratou,et al. Retrieved from http://www.springerlink.com/content/627663m2g8320282/

Abstract:

The advance of technology and the development of the World Wide Web created immense opportunities for people to communicate and exchange information in new ways. This has also been a fact for scholars and the way they communicate their research findings like the SOAP. The Study for Open Access Publishing (SOAP) project is one of the initiatives undertaken to explore the risks and opportunities of the transition to open access publishing. Some of the early analyses of open access journals listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) show that more than half of the open access publishing initiatives were undertaken by smaller publishers, learned societies and few publishing houses that own a large number of journal titles. Regarding income sources as means for sustaining a journal’s functions, “article processing charges", "membership fee" and "advertisement" are the predominant options for the publishing houses; "subscription to the print version of the journal", "sponsorship" and somewhat less the "article processing charges" have the highest incidences for all other publishers.

Things I Learned:

1. The use of open access becomes more and more prevalent nowadays. From this reading, I learned that income sources, scholars, and publishers study the risks and opportunities of open access publishing. This includes cost. Open access publishing saves money by removing the costs of print reproduction. However, there are significant costs associated with the creation of an online platform that will provide the level of service expected by users such as skilled IT staff, an enhanced sales function, and customer service that supports 24/7 delivery.

2. Another issue that I learned in the open access publishing is the journal pricing. With online publishing has come a reduced emphasis on the journal title and on particular issues, and a greater concentration on the article.

3. I also learned that if all publishers are to meet the challenge of open access, they need to recognize that some issues are no longer of the same importance. Retention of copyright is one example: a licence from the author should be sufficient to meet the needs of the publisher. Publishers need to concentrate on how they can add extra value to their content beyond what can be provided by self-publication or an institutional repository.

Implications:

As an educator, I really believe that Open Access Publishing contributes a lot in the world of Open Access Literature. As a proof, this study showed that more than half of the open access publishing initiatives were undertaken by academic institutions. After reading this article, I had one conclusion in mind that is to support the open access publishing in many ways.