Why OBP is not participating in KU Open Funding: and why libraries should understand the reasons. | Open Book Publishers Blog

"So – why is OBP not going to participate in this KU offering?

To begin with, we have had growing misgivings about the objectives and actions of KU since it transitioned from being a “non-profit” community interest company (registered in the UK) to a “for profit” commercial entity (registered in Germany), and in their own lack of openness about their business model and operations, echoing the concerns articulated by Marcel Knöchelmann his LSE Impact blog post.

More specific concerns with this particular programme emerged when OBP was invited to participate as a publisher and we were provided with a template publisher’s contract. The contract has a number of concerning restrictions, but the most concerning is the very first one: ...

These types of exclusivity contracts can be used by digital “platforms” as a strategy to monopolise and dominate an industry....

We also hope that funders will recognise the importance of developing open and collectively-controlled, community-driven infrastructures to sit alongside, and so place a competitive check on, profit-oriented alternatives...."