Open Access Book Publishing 2024-2028

Report Overview

• Sustainable funding models will ensure success of open access book publishing

• Print sales continue to drive drive revenue for open access books

The Open Access Book Publishing 2024-2028 report, published by Simba Information, provides a comprehensive analysis of the evolving landscape of open-access (OA) book publishing, examining trends, financial performance, market growth, and emerging challenges. The study covers the period from 2024 to 2028, offering insights into the factors shaping this niche but rapidly developing segment of academic publishing.

Open-access book publishing, though comprising a small percentage of the global scholarly book market, has demonstrated steady growth, with projected revenues reaching $127 million by 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8%. While the market experienced a short-term decline in output from 18,000 titles in 2022 to 14,300 in 2023, the long-term trajectory remains positive, supported by increasing adoption of OA models across disciplines and geographies.

The report highlights the resilience of print sales within the open-access model, an unexpected trend that defies conventional assumptions about digital dominance. Print editions of open-access monographs have generated significant revenue, with an average of $17,000 per title, largely driven by academic and institutional demand. Approximately 30% of reviewed titles earned over $10,000 in revenue, underscoring the continued financial importance of print alongside digital access. This success is attributed to enhanced discoverability through open-access platforms, the enduring preference for physical copies among scholars in humanities and social sciences, and innovative print-on-demand technologies.

Simba Information explores the diverse funding models that underpin the open-access ecosystem, including book processing charges (BPCs), library memberships, grants, and institutional support. These mixed revenue streams have been instrumental in stabilizing OA initiatives, particularly for smaller publishers and university presses. The average BPC varies significantly by publisher, ranging from $6,920 to over $15,000, reflecting the differing scales and cost structures within the industry.

Geographically, the report identifies Northern Europe as a leader in open-access publishing, with strong institutional and governmental support driving adoption. The humanities and social sciences dominate the Directory of Open Access Books (DOAB), accounting for 61% of listed titles. The study also highlights emerging contributions from countries outside traditional publishing hubs, including Brazil and Croatia, emphasizing the democratizing potential of open-access models.

The report examines key players in the OA book market, profiling leading publishers such as MDPI, Springer Nature, Taylor & Francis, and De Gruyter Brill. These organizations have implemented varied strategies to navigate the complexities of open-access publishing, from leveraging digital platforms to expanding print offerings. Simba Information also assesses the impact of cooperative initiatives like Knowledge Unlatched and institutional mandates from universities and funding agencies.

Open Access Book Publishing 2024-2028 concludes with projections for the future of the market, emphasizing the need for sustainable funding models, continued innovation, and a balance between digital and print formats. This report serves as an essential resource for stakeholders across the academic publishing ecosystem, including publishers, librarians, researchers, and policymakers seeking to understand and adapt to the transformative dynamics of open-access book publishing.

Definition of Open Access Book Publishing

The coverage of open access (OA) in this report includes books covered by the Directory of Open Access Books (DOAB), participants in cooperative OA book ventures like Knowledge Unlatched, and openly available titles from individual publishers. These books encompass scholarly, professional and university-level textbook publishing. Subject matter includes scientific, technical and medical (STM), the social sciences and the humanities (SSH), law, and business. DOAB only accepts peer-reviewed academic books, but Simba cannot verify and does not endorse the peer-review process of any publishers mentioned.

Books are defined in this report as digital titles delivered as PDF downloads, online access, or another e-book format. Some of these titles have a print analog that is available for sale, while others are only available in electronic form. Most books that take an open access approach are long-form social science or humanities research monographs, but textbooks and major reference works are also included.

Not every free book available online is considered an OA book for the purposes of this report. Simba does not include general interest books, the Bible, or Shakespeare, which formed the basis of Project Gutenberg. These works are also excluded from the DOAB and the Open Access Publishing in European Networks (OAPEN) repository. These books are out of copyright rather than published under an open access license with the author. Millions of out-of-copyright books and other documents are available from initiatives like Google Books and the HathiTrust Digital Library. The report profiles Google Books, HathiTrust and Project Gutenberg to provide context.

Sources of Information

The Simba team uses a combination of secondary research and competitor interviews to gather financial data. The team obtains and analyzes secondary data (library surveys and reports, marketing material, company statements, press releases, mentions in the press, etc.) to gain a comprehensive understanding of each market segment and each major player.

Simba also consults industry experts: editors/analysts that cover the professional publishing and content industry. Simba contacts various levels of management and product management at competitor organizations to get detailed product descriptions, pricing, sales figures, market share data, and delivery options, as well as strategic information they may provide.

When reported information was not available, estimates were based on historical trends, directional guidance by executives, size of competitors, relative size based on customer observations, number of titles, and library-spending studies for individual publishers. Simba also accessed its database of professional publishing executives to gather intelligence on companies that did not publicly disclose financial data. In addition, Simba’s research team has conducted searches of online news databases (including LexisNexis and Google) to obtain some figures and estimates. Furthermore, data are collected while attending industry conferences focused on the professional publishing market, including the Association of American Publishers’ Professional & Scholarly Publishing annual conference, the Society for Scholarly Publishing, book fairs, and other publishing-related conferences.