The Changing Medical Publishing Industry: Economics, Expansion, and Equity

Over the past decade, there have been significant transformations in the field of medical journal publishing: such as the shift from print to digital distribution, and the increase of open access models. While the medical publishing industry as a whole is highly profitable, there are variations across different journals. The authors examine this evolving field, highlighting that the medical publishing industry follows a peculiar business model where “pay-to-publish” system can be a disadvantage for authors who work in at institutes with less resources, and external peer reviewers receive no payment from the publisher, who generates revenue from the published content. According to the Authors, this unique economic structure makes the industry susceptible to disruptive changes.

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Recommended on behalf of EASE by Silvia Maina, Italy