(Smoothly) Transitioning to New Publishing Business Models

by KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd. 

With all the recent discussion around the US OSTP memo recommending free and immediate access to all federally funded research, we think it’s worthwhile to take a step back to assess the current state of subscription and Open Access business models and review how we got here, before considering how to best navigate this changing landscape. The following article details the history of business model innovation in scholarly journal publishing, from a Trends Talk by KGL Consulting.

For over a hundred years, the business of publishing academic journals has been sustained by the subscription model. It was always an impeccably simple premise: institutions paid, authors authored, publishers published, readers read, institutions renewed, and repeat. The 1970s marked something of a heyday for this model—an era that is often viewed by the industry as some kind of utopia—when the scholarly publishing ecosystem seemed to thrive, with an abundance of journals entering the market, bursting library shelves, institutional agreements aplenty and high renewal rates.

But then came the 1990s, when demand for online content, alongside print, started to creep in. Although most people didn’t realize it at the time, this would become a seminal moment in our long timeline, one which would spark year-upon-year-upon-year of fundamental change. Change which would manifest itself in every facet of publishing—not just in the formats in which we publish, the consumption preferences of users and institutions, and the priorities of researchers, but also in the role publishers play within this increasingly complex environment. 

Change beyond recognition

Fast forward 30 years and the industry of old has virtually evolved beyond all recognition. Societies are gradually decommissioning their print journals in favor of online alternatives; instead of selectively curating, the onus is now on publishers to process more quality submissions; publisher revenue is just as likely to be driven by APCs as subscriptions; and the author has essentially become the customer, meaning that they can “shop around” in an increasingly competitive online marketplace should their expectations not be met.

Open Access is of course the catalyst for these seismic shifts. And OA mandates from governments and funders, such as Plan S, are acting as accelerants, driving the democratization of research for all, while pulling down the content walls of subscription models at a startling rate.

Jolted into action

So, where does this leave the academic publishing business model? Before the spectre of Plan S, Open Access—in all of its forms and guises—was a somewhat slow revolution, with some publishers flipping journals to OA, many experimenting with hybrid models, and others just starting to test the water. While an OA future was somehow inevitable, it was still just on the horizon and change was sluggish. When mandates like Plan S came into force, putting a firm deadline in place for OA migration, societies and publishers were jolted into action. Those who hadn’t already, have spent the last few years reassessing their business models, re-evaluating their role in the new ecosystem and actively seeking new ways to make revenue.

A transitional phase

One of the most significant trends is the emergence of “transformative journals”—a traditional subscription-based or hybrid journal that has committed to transition to OA over time in compliance with COAlition S, gradually increasing the share of OA content year-on-year. By slowly but surely migrating to OA, on the one hand these models are proving to be a vital stepping stone towards an inevitable OA future, and on the other they are helping to cushion the blow for publishers as they buy more time to embed new approaches toward publishing and funding.

Without doubt the most important funding trend is the “transformative agreement” between publishers and institutions, the most popular of which is the “Read-and-Publish” model, whereby subscription payments paid to publishers by libraries and consortia are flipped and replaced by payments for reading and publishing, bundled into a single contract. Furthermore, we have also witnessed the rise of “Publish-and-Read” arrangements, with the publisher receiving payment for publishing, with reading thrown in at no cost. Over the last few years, we have seen a plethora of these transformative funding deals signed between the big publishers and institutions.

As scholarly publishing confronts this brave new world and grapples with the reality of mandated OA, it finds itself in the midst of a transitional phase. Publishing and funding models are being turned on their heads, but not at the speed that was once feared, which is why transformative arrangements to help smooth over the necessary transition to full OA are being warmly welcomed and embraced by the industry.

Since 2000, KGL Consulting has served as management consultant to scores of scholarly societies and organizations. To learn how to better navigate the changing landscape, contact Cara Rivera.