Economics as if science mattered: the BioOne business model and the transformation of scholarly publishing

Abstract

The BioOne database of scholarly journals in the biological and ecological sciences was established in the belief that broad and enduring access to scholarly literature is essential not just to the health of the scientific enterprise but also to the health of the wider society in which science is practiced. The prevailing model of profit-based journal publishing ? in which high prices are impeding access ? is harming the interests of the very scientists who provide its life-blood. The BioOne business model seeks to meet the interlocking goals of providing broad and enduring access, supporting the publishing enterprise of scholarly societies, and assuring that BioOne will keep pace with changes in technology and scientific communication.