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. 

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 Cambridge University Press journals 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 2023-2025.

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 2023-2025.

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."

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. 

Microbiology Society

[Discount] 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.

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. To view the list of journals that are eligible for APC waivers, scroll down to the spreadsheet under "Library Information" on this site. The APC waiver does not apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors. 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), with the exception of the RSC title RSC Advances. UB affiliated corresponding authors will receive a 15% APC discount for papers published in RSC Advances. APC waivers or discounts do not apply to UB-affiliated secondary authors. Terms of this agreement will last from January 1, 2024 until December 31, 2024.

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).

For a complete listing of SN's hybrid open access journals, please email Chris Hollister: cvh2@buffalo.edu. Terms of this agreement will last from January 1, 2025 through December 31, 2027.