Introduction Academic publishing is in crisis. Or, to be more precise, it has been in a slow-motion, decades-long spiral where systemic inertia, commercial greed, and outdated prestige structures have created an ecosystem that’s as inefficient as it is profitable, for some. Despite the rise of digital platforms, open access initiatives, and AI tools, meaningful reform … Read more
Introduction If there’s one publishing ecosystem that has moved at breakneck speed over the last two decades, it’s China’s. Once seen as a closed-off, state-controlled academic backwater, the country has transformed into a publishing superpower, churning out more research papers than any other nation. The Chinese academic publishing market will have become both a global … Read more
Introduction Before the term “predatory journal” was a staple of every academic editor’s vocabulary, before university librarians whispered warnings about shady publishers charging authors for fake peer review, there was Jeffrey Beall. A quiet academic librarian from the University of Colorado Denver, Beall launched a blog that would shake the foundations of scholarly publishing. It … Read more
Introduction Springer Nature and the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) announced a landmark agreement: an unlimited open access publishing deal that enables researchers from BTAA institutions to publish an unlimited number of open access articles in Springer Nature journals. This arrangement is a significant shift in the evolving landscape of academic publishing. But what does … Read more
Introduction Academic publishing is a multi-billion-dollar industry—valued at almost $30 billion globally—propped up by a curious economic paradox: the majority of its labor force works for free. Peer reviewers, editors, and even authors provide their services without direct compensation, supporting publishing conglomerates that report profit margins rivaling those of tech giants. How did this industry, … Read more