BMJ Case Reports

UB Libraries have an institutional fellowship with BMJ Case Reports. UB authors do not have to pay the fees to submit cases but must contact the Abbott Library to get a code. Please read the BMJ Case Reports product description page for more details on how to use this discount and submit.

Elsevier journals

According to the 2020 modified agreement with Elsevier, "all SUNY faculty are given a 10% discount on article process[ing] charges (APCs) if they wish to publish their work open access in Elsevier journals."

Microbiology Society

UB Libraries subscribe to the following Microbiology Society journals: Journal of General Virology, Journal of Medical Microbiology and Microbiology. All UB-affiliated authors receive a 15 percent discount on the journal APCs for these journals. Authors must select the OpenMicrobiology option when submitting an article.

UB-affiliated authors receive a 50 percent discount on the journal APCs for JMM Case Reports.

Public Library of Science (PLOS)

The UB Libraries have entered into a community action publishing agreement with PLOS that allows UB authors to publish an unlimited number of papers in the high-impact, open access journals, PLOS Biology and PLOS Medicine, for the next three years (through Dec. 31, 2023), with no article processing charges (APCs).

In order to take advantage of this discount, please read the answer to the question, "My institution is a member, how do I make sure I get my benefits?" on the PLOS Community Action Publishing FAQ.

SCOAP3 for researchers engaged in high-energy physics

SCOAP3 is an international consortium of thousands of libraries, funding agencies and research centers that have established agreements with publishers in the high-energy physics field. These agreements subsidize the APCs for publishing in SCOAP3 journals. UB authors pay no APCs, retain copyright and have their articles published with immediate open access, thereby ensuring compliance with federal open access mandates.

Volunteer efforts

Many OA publishers rely on the efforts of the research community—networks of scholars who volunteer their time to help publish OA journals in their fields. Open Humanities Press and Speleobiology Notes are two examples.

Author fees

Other OA publishers charge article processing charges (APCs). These fees vary in cost and are often paid by using grant money or are paid by the author’s institution. PLOS Biology is an OA journal that relies on APCs.

Alternative revenue streams

Many OA journals are free to read online, but they charge for advertisements, memberships, print versions and conferences. The British Medical Journal is an OA journal that leverages a combination of these revenue streams.