Springer Open Choice Announced

[Liblicense-L Listowner <liblicen@pantheon.yale.edu>]

A new announcement from the Springer Web site at:  
http://www.springeronline.com/sgw/cda/frontpage/0,10735,1-40359-0-0-0,00.html

Library subscribers, see in particular the description of how Open Choice 
affects subscription prices.

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SPRINGER OPEN CHOICE

Springer presents Springer Open Choice: the program that allows authors of
journal articles to pay a basic fee to have their journal article made
available to the public.

With Springer Open Choice the author decides how he or she wants to be
published in the leading and most respected journals in the scientific
community. Springer still offers, and recommends, the traditional
publishing model as a time-tested way of guaranteeing editorial quality
and independence, but now also offers authors the option to pay to have
their journal articles made available for free to anyone, anywhere in the
world.

Springer believes in the value and longevity of the subscription
publishing model, and is not changing its business model. Springer Open
Choice is an option, designed to ensure that authors will never have to
question whether or not a business model will keep them from publishing in
any of our more than 1,150 quality publications.

Whatever the decision, an authors work will always benefit from all
Springer has to offer. There is no difference between Springer Open Choice
articles and the more than 100,000 articles Springer regularly publishes
each year. All articles will be peer-reviewed, professionally produced,
and available in both print and electronic versions via SpringerLink. In
addition, every article will be offered to Abstracting and Indexing
services.

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How Springer Open Choice Works

Upon acceptance for publication, authors can sign up for Springer Open
Choice via our online order form. (Click "Order Open Choice" on the
right.)

This way the peer review process remains completely impartial. Springer
Open Choice articles are produced with exactly the same features and
benefits of traditionally published articles, and will appear in both the
print and electronic version of the selected journal. They will receive
the same high-quality editorial oversight and production as every other
Springer publication. Springer Open Choice articles are freely available
for anyone to read, download, or print from SpringerLink.

Since costs are involved in every step of the publication process, from
peer-review to printing and hosting the final paper on dedicated servers,
we ask that the author, or their institution or funding agency, pay a fee
of $3,000 USD (which can also be invoiced in Euros). Since the article
will also be available in print, special surcharges for color, oversized
articles, and other factors may apply. The Springer Open Choice fee does
not replace any existing journal policies on author-borne publication
costs. This one-time publication charge allows the work to be permanently
archived and freely available via SpringerLink to anyone, anywhere in the
world for viewing, full-text searching, and downloading.

Springer Open Choice for Libraries

Springer Open Choice is designed to give authors the choice of how to have
their research published in the same Springer journals to which they
usually submit. By definition, this means that Springer journals will
contain a mixture of Springer Open Choice articles, and articles published
under the traditional subscription-based model. Springer plans to continue
to evaluate its journal subscription prices on a yearly basis, based on a
number of factors, including the amount of subscription-model content
being published.

Libraries pay subscriptions for subscription-model content. Once a year
(usually mid-year) the prices for the next years subscriptions are
calculated. At that time, Springer will calculate the number of articles
published under the traditional model in the previous 12 months. If that
number is less than the twelve month period before that, then subscription
prices will decrease accordingly. If it has increased, then prices will
increase accordingly. In a nutshell: subscription prices are tied to the
amount of traditionally published, subscription-model content, with
adjustments being reflected in the next years subscription prices.

Springer Open Choice articles will always be clearly identified as such in
our online platform to provide you with a visible measurement of Springer
Open Choice adoption. For those customers with print-only subscriptions, a
report detailing Springer Open Choice adoption by journal can be obtained
at the end of each year from your Sales representative.

Open Choice Details

Springer Open Choice offers all of the benefits of a world-class
scientific publisher. The same rigorous editorial process and high level
of service are provided for all of our articles, regardless of publication
model.

Springer Open Choice Articles receive: 

 The same quality peer review 
 Professional production 
 CrossRef registration 
 Registration to Abstracting and Indexing services 
 Distribution in print as well as via SpringerLink 
 
SpringerLink provides: 

 24/7 availability worldwide 
 HTML and PDF versions of articles 
 Full-text search ability for over 300,000 documents 
 Powerful advanced search functionality 
 Online First for fast dissemination 
 Alerting service 

Springer Open Choice articles will be identified as freely available on
SpringerLink, and will appear no differently in the print editions.  
Springer will also indicate in the metadata for all Springer Open Choice
articles that they are freely available from the publishers site.

Springer Open Choice & Copyright 

In order to help ensure the integrity and archival nature of all published
articles, SpringerLink will be the sole authorized venue for online
distribution of Springer Open Choice articles. Springer Open Choice does
not supersede or invalidate any copyright protection, or alter applicable
law governing ownership and publication rights of articles.

In order to continue to protect the rights of authors and to guarantee a
high standard of quality, Springer will continue to require standard
consent-to-publish and transfer-of-copyright agreements. Copying,
reproducing, distributing, or posting of the publishers version of the
article on a third party server is not permitted. This enables Springer to
provide the benefit of free online access while preserving scientific
integrity and author attribution.

Price and Payment Information

The basic fee for Springer Open Choice is $3,000 USD, which can be
invoiced in Euros. Only the authors are allowed to request Springer Open
Choice, and the order must be placed, and payment received in full, prior
to publication. Springer Open Choice may be ordered directly from
SpringerOnline.com, we recommend that only the contact author place the
order. Payments can be made by any party via credit card (recommended),
check, or invoice but may not be split among parties. Springer Open Choice
articles that have not been paid in full will be published on schedule as
regular subscription-model articles. VAT is not included in the $3,000
price and must be added at the appropriate rate for those parties paying
from countries where VAT is applicable.

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