Open Access international: The future of science
The ZBW shapes Open Access in the globally networked science system
The ZBW – Leibniz Information Centre for Economics plays a central role in the open access transformation of the economics publication market. As a consortium and negotiation leader, the ZBW not only acts as a mediator between research institutions and publishers, but also actively shapes the framework conditions for the future publication landscape. This is particularly evident in connection with the complex negotiations and transformation contracts, such as the agreement with the academic publisher Taylor & Francis.
The importance of transformation
For decades, the world of publishing has been characterised by subscription models in which institutions have acquired access to research results at great expense. For many institutions, these costs were hardly affordable, which restricted access to scientific findings. Even scientists often did not have free access to their own work. This situation hindered scientific exchange and contradicted the principle of open science.
Thanks to massive pressure and commitment from the scientific community, libraries and infrastructure facilities, science policy bodies and research funding organisations and ultimately due to the legal framework at European level, this situation has now changed significantly. Open Access makes publications freely accessible – regardless of geographical, institutional or financial barriers. This promotes scientific discourse, makes research more visible and, as a result, increases its benefit to society.
A key change concerns the publishers’ business model: instead of selling subscriptions, publishers are paid for their services – such as organising peer reviews, publication and quality assurance. “We are talking about the transformation of an entire market to a different financing model,” explained Jens Lazarus, Head of Inventory and Licence Management at the ZBW.
This change requires adjustments in the financing of science. While previous models focussed costs on access, publishing itself is now financed. Institutions that publish a lot need more funding, while others have to pay less. The introduction of new distribution models is therefore complex and fraught with conflict. Lazarus emphasises the need for long-term perspectives: “We need patience to establish these new structures.”
The role of the ZBW as negotiator
The ZBW – Leibniz Information Centre for Economics plays a leading role in the Open Access transformation of the scientific publication market. This task includes not only the coordination of consortia of academic libraries, but also the active design and negotiation of framework conditions that meet the needs of the various academic institutions.
As a negotiator, the ZBW enters into direct dialogue with publishers and works with partners to develop innovative contract models that promote open access. One example of the successful realisation of this role is the contract with Taylor & Francis. After lengthy negotiations, it was possible to establish a sustainable model that enables open access without placing an additional financial burden on the institutions involved. The aim of the contract was to create a fair balance between the interests of the publishers and the needs of the academic institutions. This allowed the scientists to benefit from the advantages of open publication, while the publisher received a stable basis for its business model. In 2024, 1,377 publications from participating institutions were published in open access under this agreement; that is around two thirds of all publications from Germany at Taylor&Francis.
However, the negotiations revealed the complexity of the transformation process. Differing publication figures between the participating institutions, hybrid models in which articles in a journal are published both in open access and behind a paywall, and uncertainties about future developments made it difficult to establish long-term agreements. “We had to realise that a long-term contract with a resilient model is currently not feasible,” explained Jens Lazarus, Head of Collection and Licence Management at the ZBW. Instead, a contract with a shorter term was concluded in order to retain flexibility for future adjustments.
The experience from the negotiations with Taylor & Francis underlines how important it is to have realistic expectations of the transformation and at the same time to strengthen the dialogue between publishers and academic institutions. The ZBW is focussing on transparency and cooperation in order to find viable long-term solutions.
International cooperation is key
The open access transformation can only be successfully implemented in an international context. Academic publishers calculate their business models globally, and national solo efforts often give them room to manoeuvre in order to maintain existing structures. Europe and North America are currently pioneers in the implementation of Open Access. European research funders in particular have taken clear positions in favour of Open Access at an early stage, thereby providing an important impetus.
Asia, as a growing market for scientific publications, is also playing an increasingly important role. Although the market dynamics there are different, there are also signs of increasing acceptance of open access. Jens Lazarus emphasises the importance of this global networking: “Only through close international coordination can we ensure that open access becomes the global standard.”
These international co-operations also make it possible to achieve greater leverage vis-à-vis publishers. Consortia that go beyond national borders can act more strongly and thus negotiate better conditions for scientific institutions.
Artificial intelligence and scientific publishing
The development of artificial intelligence has also created new challenges and opportunities in the field of scientific publishing. AI systems require large amounts of data in order to function efficiently, and scientific publications are a valuable resource for this.
The use of publications for AI applications raises legal and licensing issues, particularly in the area of conflict between scientific institutions and publishers. While the former invoke the copyright limitation rules in order to be able to train AI models with publication data, many publishers take a defensive stance with restrictive clauses to protect their business models.
As there is still no conclusive legal clarification in this area, many questions remain unanswered which still have to be decided by the courts and answered accordingly in order to clearly define the possibilities of use. The Licensing and Legal Department of the ZBW is dealing with this topic in order to support the handling of its own challenges within the existing legal framework and to adequately take into account the needs of the ZBW as a scientific institution as well as the interests of publishers.
At the same time, the integration of AI harbours potential: it can speed up the review process, facilitate the analysis of large amounts of data and promote new findings. However, Jens Lazarus from the ZBW warns that without clear rules and fair licensing models, innovation could bypass publicly funded science. The scientific community is therefore faced with the task of finding a way to open up the benefits of AI without infringing on the rights of authors and the interests of publishers. Open and legally secure handling of publication data for AI could become a new milestone in science communication – provided that the legal and economic framework conditions are jointly designed.
Listening tip (in german):
Open Access transformation in the scientific publication market
In the 42nd podcast episode of “The Future is Open Science”, Jens Lazarus reports on his negotiations with Taylor & Francis, the world’s fourth largest scientific publisher, and provides insights into the influence of AI on the development of Open Access.
Duration 52 minutes.
*This text was written on 17 April 2025.
This text was translated on 12 May 2025 using DeeplPro.