A Snapshot of Electronic Journals, August 1999

Abstract

In response to scientific journal price increases, universities and academic libraries are taking action to encourage the introduction of lower cost electronic journals that will compete with the established commercial publishers. Additionally, universities are banding together to purchase electronic journal database subscriptions on more favorable terms than could have been obtained independently. It has recently been suggested at a meeting of university provosts that the ease with which articles can be posted on the Internet makes it possible to revise the entire mechanism of academic publishing. For example, scholarly societies could create certification boards to peer-review articles submitted for publication. Upon certification, the authors could post the articles marked with a “seal of approval” on their Websites. While this proposal raises additional issues to be resolved before it could ever be implemented, the potential for a diminished role of traditional print journals is worthy of further discussion. Similarly, the director of the National Institutes of Health has proposed the creation of a freely available electronic archive of peer-reviewed articles concerning biomedical research. As more representatives from divergent corners of the academic community call for changes to the current system of scholarly publishing, the established commercial publishers will ultimately be forced to change their pricing practices or will be bypassed by new electronic publishers.