aps2025tib

Publisher

American Physical Society (APS)
Agreement ID aps2025tib
Agreement labeling Read and Publish License Agreement
Has the agreement been fully disclosed and published? Yes
URL Agreement
Agreement period 01/01/2025 – 12/31/2028
Consortia / Institution TIB Consortium
Country Germany
SIZE

Approximate range of annual corresponding author publications

 715
Comments on size/article output Estimate based on avg. annual article output of participating institutions 2021-2023
COSTS

How do the costs of the agreement relate to previous subscription-only agreements with the publisher?

 Cost increase
Comments on cost development Subscription cost for member group was not sufficient to cover all publishing
FINANCIAL SHIFT

Transformative agreements vary by their transformative mechanisms, meaning the way in which financing is shifted from the subscription side to open access publishing. What are the characteristics of this agreement to this regard?

 Subscriptions partly converted to OA publishing fees
RISK SHARING

How do entitlements for open access publishing correlate to the anticipated article output? Which mechanisms for risk sharing have been agreed in cases of exceeding or not reaching the number of OA publishing entitlements?

 

 A mid-term review of this agreement will take place during the third quarter of
2026 to assess whether the projected article output (basis for cost) is in line with the actual article output for the member group. If the deviation is > 5% both parties might terminate the agreement
OA COVERAGE

Are all journals relevant to your affiliated authors (in which you expect them to publish) eligible for OA publishing under the agreement?

 Yes
Are fully open access journals covered by the agreement? No
OA LICENSE CC-BY mandatory
ARTICLE TYPES
 Articles that are of all chargeable article types acceptable under the policies of the Participating Journal, including but not limited to: Regular Articles, Letters, Rapid Communications, Reviews, Perspectives, and Short Papers
ACCESS COSTS

What is the approximate share of access related costs of the overall agreement?

 More than 50%
Comments on access costs Access costs (“read fees”) decrease annually over the term of the agreement while publishing-related costs (“publish fee”) increases annually
ACCESS COVERAGE

Are all read relevant journals covered by the agreement?

 Yes
PERPETUAL ACCESS RIGHTS Yes
WORKFLOW ASSESSMENT Too early to assess
Comments on workflows There is no verification process in place, we trust the publisher to match corresponding authors to participating institutions
OVERALL ASSESSMENT AND COMMENTS Due to the relatively low subscription level and the high amount of publications from Germany, it was clear from the beginning that a cost-neutral transformation from a subscription-based model to a publication-based model was not achievable. However, with this model an acceptable compromise has been found. Unlimited OA publication services (hybrid) are included from the beginning, while the needed increases in funds is stretched out over the four years of the term, making it easier for participating institutions to budget for the required cost increases while allowing all corresponding authors to publish OA. The agreement also offers significant benefits regarding the reading portion, including extended access to the entire portfolio, permanent access rights to the licensed material and improved contractual conditions.
Request contact to the licensee contact@esac-initiative.org