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We're open to open. Over the years, our business has steadily transformed to enable our customers to publish openly while still offering the option to read and publish under the subscription model. We’ve partnered with institutions around the world on read and publish agreements to open doors together. Learn how the world is seeing open and what you need for your open journey.
Speak to one of our representatives to find out more.
Welcome to Open to open, where we consider how librarians can help their organizations on the journey to open access.
Everyone has a view on open access. We’re here to share insights, listen, cut through the complexity, explore the options and help you get on the path to open access, and the trusted and authoritative content that works for you.
Open access is a topic that has sparked a lot of conversation and debate. Below, we’ve highlighted the key opinions that we’ve gathered from fellow librarians and researchers.
Strong support from librarians and researchers 76% of researchers and 93% of research library directors express strong support for open access. - Elsevier 2022, ARL2022 | Interest in new agreements 74% of librarians are in support of transformative / read and publish agreements. - IFLA 2020 | Librarian role growing in importance 92% felt that their role in scholarly communication has expanded beyond traditional responsibilities - Open Access Week 2022 |
Collaboration 84% of librarians agreed that greater collaboration between libraries, publishers, and funding agencies is essential for promoting sustainable OA practices. - Elsevier 2022 | Advocacy and training 82% believed that librarians should take a proactive role in educating researchers and students about OA and its benefits. - IFLA 2020 | Concern about predatory journals 65% of librarians were worried about the rise of predatory OA journals. - ARL 2022 |
Paying APCs 68% of researchers regard having to find funding for APCs as the key barrier to OA. - Elsevier 2022 | Organizational support 78% of researchers would submit their research open access if the APC was paid by their institution or funder. - Wiley 2024 | Researcher and student success remains key priority 93% of global academic leaders put a high priority on ensuring research excellence, but only 56% feel well prepared to meet this challenge. - Elsevier/Ipsos 2024 |
We’ve steadily transformed our business to allow our customers to publish openly whilst still being able to publish under the subscription model. Here’s a summary of our progress.
Largest portfolio of 890 OA journals
34% of the articles we publish are OA vs 2% a decade ago
Enabling over 500,000 researchers to publish OA across the globe
Waiving or discounting OA publishing costs for 80% of authors from the Global South
New read and publish agreements with over 3,600 institutions worldwide
Above average citation levels with below average price increases
When discussing the journey to open access, we always ask librarians what’s important to them and the stakeholders they represent. From what we’ve heard, below are the top five goals and objectives.
Enable our researchers to read subscription content
Enable our researchers to meet their funders’ requirements
Help our researchers publish openly with very little hassle
Help our researchers submit their research to quality, respected titles
Get fair treatment from our publishing partners
One of the key vehicles we’ve created to help institutions with their open access journey, is the read and publish agreement. Such agreements strive to accommodate different needs and provide a bridge between the different systems.
Here are the key features and benefits of the read and publish agreements we're forging with our partners.
Ability to continue to provide high-quality content while also being able to support open access with their subscription dollars
A tailored workflow to support the open access message of the organization/institution
Helping authors meet the requirements of their funded research
Flexible pricing and ability to cater to specific needs
A transformative agreement that allows authors to publish in the highest quality journals at no additional cost
We’re very aware that a transition to any new system can be complex and create its own pain points. We asked three institutions that pursued a new
Elsevier read and publish agreement to document their candid views on the process. You can read the full case studies here.
- Dr Andy Corrigan, Associate Dean of Libraries, Tulane University
- Bob Gerrity, University Librarian at Monash University, Australia
- Keith Webster, Dean of University Libraries at CMU
So there you have it – an open perspective on open access. There is no one right or wrong journey to open, so it's our aim to meet our customers where they are and partner with them to meet their specific needs.
By collaborating with Elsevier, your institution will meet funder requirements on open access, amplify the global impact of its research, and inspire greater scientific collaboration for a more enlightened and equitable world.
We’d love to talk with you in person, listen to your perspectives and see how we can best support you.
Please click on the link below and we’ll be in touch very soon.
