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Journal Inflation: Overview of Unbundling

Big Deal Negotiations

Publisher 

Expiration Year 

Duration of Current Contract 

Springer-Nature

2023

4 years

Elsevier

2023

 3 years

Sage

2024

3 years

 Wiley

2024

3 years

Taylor & Francis

2025

5 years

License Negotiation Principles

USU endorses the model license and licensing principles put forward by the Greater Western Library Alliance. On the basis of those documents, GWLA negotiates and manages some of USU’s big deals. Those same principles—sustainability and transparency, access and privacy, and supporting scholarship—are central to our own negotiation process when we work directly with publishers.

Overview of a Potential Unbundling Process

In the event that subscription costs exceed available funding, we may begin unbundling one or more of journal packages. Below is the process we currently anticipate using, and we encourage your feedback along the way.

  1. Library uses best data available to assess the relative value of our journal packages (happening now)
  2. At some future point, University increases to the library acquisitions budget will not keep pace with the library's reduced buying power due to publisher cost increases
  3. Library strategically selects journal package(s) to unbundle
  4. Library prioritizes journals in the unbundled package(s) to keep those of highest value
  5. Faculty provide feedback on the relative value of journals from unbundled package for their discipline
  6. Library refines the prioritization of journals in the unbundled package(s)
  7. Faculty provide feedback on the final journal list
  8. Library finalizes the journal list and negotiates with selected publisher(s)
  9. Library announces outcome

Next Steps

Help us unbundle

Offer the Library your feedback in our unbundling project (if requested in the “Current Status” section). In particular, once we have made a preliminary choice about which package to unbundle, we want to hear what value that publisher provides to your research and teaching. After we finalize the choice of publisher to unbundle, we want to know if you agree with our assessment of which journals in your field to maintain individual (unbundled) subscriptions to.

Carefully contextualize research impact

In the promotion-and-tenure process, emphasize methods of showing research impact other than journal-level impact factors.

Support sustainable publishing models

Consider publishing in reputable Open Access journals. Open Access shifts the costs away from Library subscription budgets while making your research results freely available to the world.

Access articles ethically

Learn how to use Library services to access articles we don’t own.

Faculty Feedback

The Library values the feedback of USU faculty, staff, and students as we work to determine the most cost-effective use of journal-subscription funds. Subject-liaison librarians will contact faculty at key points for specific feedback about journal subscriptions to maintain. New mechanisms may be developed for that feedback, and you can find up-to-date information on those on this page.

Meanwhile, feel free to contact your assigned liaison at any time with questions about the process or suggestions about specific publishers or journals. If you don’t know the librarian that works with your department visit the Subject Librarian List and search for your department’s name. Then use the phone number or email address listed to contact the person who is the closest match.

Questions? Contact your department liaison

Contact your liaison librarian with any questions about unbundling. Search for your department on our Subject Liaison List to find your librarian and their contact information.

Additional Resources