MIT Press wants to flip subscription journal to open access • The Register

"Academic publisher the MIT Press has announced a new initiative to move from subscription-funded journals to open-access papers that are free of charge.

The project, dubbed Shift+OPEN, is now accepting applications from English-language journals without geographic restrictions, but it's only funding a single publication for now, MIT Press Director of Journals and Open Access Nick Lindsay told The Register.

That lucky journal will have "the expenses of transitioning a journal to an open access model" covered for three years, access to the MIT Press's "full suite of publishing services," and support to "develop a sustainable funding model" once the three years of funding ends....

The MIT Press is looking for a partner to examine how to balance costs and quality in relation to continued diamond open access funding, and Lindsay said that he's confident the program can lead to a sustainable model "if all sides are willing to work toward that goal." 

As to what that funding model could look like, Lindsay said it's going to depend largely on the journal chosen for Shift+OPEN funds. He told us the model will likely be a mixed-funding design similar to how arXiv is funded (e.g. by Cornell University, the Simons Foundation, institutional members and donors), though again that will depend on the journal; "if there's a society behind the title then we've probably got a broader set of options than if it's not." ..."