Market failure in the research world • Speaker • Public Address

"The 'serials crisis' has been a feature of research life for over 20 years. According to figures from the US Association of Research Libraries, during 1986-2007 academic journal subscription charges increased by 340%, four times the rate of inflation. Publishers contribute very little to the production of research articles — referees and authors typically receive zero payment, and editors very little, from the publisher. Typesetting and other production costs have fallen. Yet the profit margins of the dominant commercial academic publishers such as Elsevier, Springer, Wiley and Taylor & Francis are typically around 35-40% — comparable to Apple Computer. It seems likely that market failure has occurred somehow. There are several apparent reasons for this situation ..."