Financial aspects of open access journals Authors María Francisca Abad Abstract The goal of open access (OA) journals is to offer free online access to the full texts of peer-reviewed research journal articles. But, how should this objective be financed? The best known alternative to the traditional subscription model (toll access) is the author pays model. Nevertheless, this model is not free from disadvantages and its lack of universal acceptance has prevented it from becoming the definitive model. This article examines the different ways in which OA journals have financed their publication costs, analyzing the pros and cons of each system. Thus, five different financial models are examined: 1) free OA journals for authors and readers; 2) free OA journals for authors and readers of the online version, with subscription payment for the paper version; 3) author pays OA journals; 4) hybrid systems: subscription journals with option to OA; and 5) free access to the contents after a period of embargo. Exceptions to these scenarios are noted as well. Downloads Text complet (Català) Published 2010-01-22 Issue 5-1 Section Distinguished lectures. Ramon Margalef Award for Ecology 2012 License This work is subject, unless the contrary is indicated in the text, the photographs or in other illustrations, to an Attribution —Non-Commercial— No Derivative Works 3.0 Creative Commons License, the full text of which can be consulted at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/. You are free to share, copy, distribute and transmit the work provided that the author is credited and reuse of the material is restricted to non-commercial purposes only and that no derivative works are created from the original material.
