Open Access Publishing: Article processing charges

Article processing charges (APCs) are levied by publishers to authors who wish to publish their articles open access. APCs are used by hybrid or fully open access journals in lieu of subscription fees that libraries and readers have traditionally paid to gain access to research articles.

The UB Libraries do not have a budget to assist authors with APCs. However, the Libraries are actively exploring opportunities to partner with journal publishers on read-and-publish, community action, and subscribe-to-open publishing agreements that may provide APC discounts or waivers. All such current agreements are listed below. 

NOTE: To qualify for an APC discount or waiver in any of the agreements listed below, corresponding authors must:

• Be currently affiliated with the University at Buffalo [when the manuscript is submitted and when it is accepted].
• Indicate the University at Buffalo as their institution [during the manuscript submission process].
• List their UB email address [during the manuscript submission process].

American Physiological Society (APS)

[Subscribe-to-open agreement] By virtue of the Libraries' current subscriptions, UB-affiliated corresponding authors may publish an unlimited number of open access articles in the following APS journals with no article processing charges (APCs):

• American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology 
• American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism 
• American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology 
• American Journal of Physiology-Heart and Circulatory Physiology 
• American Journal of Physiology-Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology 
• American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology 
• American Journal of Physiology-Renal Physiology

These benefits are predicated on sufficient annual renewals among community subscribers and are subject to change at the beginning of each volume/calendar year.

Biochemical Society

[Subscribe-to-open agreement] By virtue of the UB Libraries' current subscriptions, UB-affiliated corresponding authors may publish an unlimited number of open access articles in Biochemical Journal, Biochemical Society Transactions, Clinical Science, Emerging Topics in Life Sciences, and Essays in Biochemistry with no article processing charges (APCs). These benefits are predicated on sufficient annual renewals among community subscribers and are subject to change at the beginning of each volume/calendar year.

BMJ Case Reports

[Fellowship agreement] The UB Libraries have an institutional fellowship with British Medical Journal (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.

Cambridge University Press 

[Read-and-publish agreement] Under terms of the current agreement, UB corresponding authors can publish an unlimited number of open access articles in the Cambridge University Press journals listed on this site with no article processing charges (APCs). The APC waiver does not apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors, nor does it apply to book reviews. Terms of this agreement will last from January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2025.

Company of Biologists 

[Read-and-publish agreement] Under terms of the current agreement, UB-affiliated corresponding authors can publish an unlimited number of open access articles in the journals, Biology Open, Development, Disease Models and Mechanisms, Journal of Cell Science, or Journal of Experimental Biology, with no article processing charges (APCs). The APC waiver does not apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors. Terms of this agreement will last from January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2025.

Elsevier 

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

European Mathematical Society

[Subscribe-to-open agreement] The community of institutional subscribers, including the UB Libraries, permits EMS to operate as a no-fee open access publisher. Presently, 22 of the publisher's 26 journals operate under the subscribe-to-open (S2O) model; the remaining titles are diamond open access. UB-affiliated corresponding authors may publish an unlimited number of open access articles in EMS journals with no article processing charges (APCs). This benefit is predicated on sufficient annual renewals among community subscribers and is subject to change at the beginning of each volume/calendar year. (NOTE: Whether an article appears open access in EMS's S2O titles is not based on submission or acceptance dates. Instead, it is based on the assigned volume and issue, and whether the journal has met its subscription target for that calendar year.]

Institute of Physics (IOP) Publishing

[Read-and-publish agreement] Under terms of the current agreement, UB-affiliated corresponding authors can publish an unlimited number of open access articles in most IOP Publishing journals with no article processing charges (APCs). Journals included in this agreement are those listed under sections A, B, C, and D of this document provided by the publisher. The APC waiver does not apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors. Terms of this agreement will last until December 31, 2026.

Mathematical Sciences Publishers (MSP) 

[Subscribe-to-open agreement] The UB Libraries' are part of a community action "subscribe-to-open initiative" with MSP. As a result, all authors, regardless of institutional affiliation, can publish an unlimited number of papers open access in the following MSP journals without being charged APCs: Topology, Algebraic & Geometric Topology, Algebra & Number Theory, Analysis & PDE, and The Pacific Journal of Mathematics. This benefit is predicated on sufficient annual renewals among community members and is subject to change. 

Microbiology Society

[Subscribe-to-open agreement] By virtue of the UB Libraries' current subscriptions, UB-affiliated corresponding authors may publish an unlimited number of open access articles in the Journal of General Virology and the Journal of Medical Microbiology with no article processing charges (APCs). These benefits are predicated on sufficient annual renewals among community subscribers and are subject to change at the beginning of each volume/calendar year.

Oxford University Press (OUP)

[Read-and-publish agreement] Under terms of the current agreement, UB-affiliated corresponding authors can publish an unlimited number of open access articles in OUP's fully open or hybrid journals with no article processing charges (APCs). In short, this benefit applies to any OUP journal that has an open access option, and it includes the following article types: brief reports, case reports, research articles, and review articles. The APC waiver does not apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors. Refer to the "Oxford University Press titles" spreadsheet below for a list of eligible journals. Terms of this agreement will last from January 1, 2025 through December 31, 2027.

Public Library of Science (PLoS)

[Community action agreement] Under terms of the current agreement, UB-affiliated corresponding authors can publish an unlimited number of open access articles in all PLoS journals with no article processing charges (APCs). The APC waiver does not apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors. Terms of this agreement will last until December 31, 2026.

Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)

[Read-and-publish agreement and discount] Under terms of a new agreement, UB-affiliated corresponding authors can publish an unlimited number of open access articles in all of RSC's hybrid or gold open access journals with no article processing charges (APCs). APC waivers do not apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors. Terms of this agreement will last from January 1, 2024 until December 31, 2025.

Sponsoring Consortium for Open Access Publishing in Particle Physics (SCOAP3)

[Read-and-publish agreement] 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 these 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.

Springer Nature (SN)

[Read-and-publish agreement] Under terms of a new consortial agreement negotiated by the Northeast Research Libraries, UB-affiliated corresponding authors can publish open access articles in SN's hybrid open access journals with no article processing charges (APCs). This agreement does not apply to SN's fully open access titles, nor does it apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors. APC waivers are drawn from a broader fund that is shared with twelve other institutions. This is a first come, first serve benefit. Once the pool of APC waivers is depleted, the benefit will no longer be in effect. The following article types are eligible for the APC waiver benefit:

• Original paper: Standard article, generally presenting new results which may also be referred to as original research, original article, original paper, or research paper.
• Review paper: Standard article, interpreting previously published results.
• Brief communication: Short article submitted for rapid publication that exhibits the same structure as a standard article.
• Continuing education: Article forming integral part of further education (usually medical).

Refer to the "Springer Nature titles" spreadsheet below for a list of eligible hybrid journals. Terms of this agreement will last from January 1, 2025 through December 31, 2026.