Models and development

The funding of Diamond OA is still developing, and many questions need to be resolved concerning resources, financial flows, funding criteria and distribution mechanisms. There are a variety of approaches, ranging from consortial funding initiatives to community funding appeals from individual journals. 

For journal editors, this means that the procurement of financial support for their journals is tricky. However, there are concerted efforts on national and international levels to support the running and production of Diamond OA with technical tools, editorial instruments, and reliable information. Libraries and initiatives all over Switzerland and Europe invest in the support measures to enable Diamond OA publishing even without established financial flows. This support begins with the hosting services provided by the institutions, which give editorial teams a professional foundation for their work and a significant head start.

For Diamond OA book projects, the situation is different. There is a small number of  – mainly smaller – publishing houses that offer a path to Diamond OA. There are also currently three Swiss IPSPs that provide authors and book-series editors with a Diamond OA publishing platform and service packages at their university (see above). However, here too additional expenses can arise: language editing, proofreading, rights clearance for image-use, to name a few. There are only minimal funding sources to cover those: foundations, departmental funding and prize-monies come to mind. 

There are currently several developments and projects that are tackling the financing issue for journals:

  •  By offering matching funds, Swiss academies, particularly the SAGW, have been staunch supporters of Diamond OA journals.
  • The Swissuniversities-funded project CoDOA is building a consortial funding solution to financially support Diamond OA journals.
  • Universities in Lausanne are running a Diamond Open Access Fund.
  • Under certain conditions Pro Litteris, the official collective management organisation for texts and images in Switzerland, pays royalties for online works.

Diamond OA journals of international scope should try to obtain funding from other countries: 

  • In Germany, for example, there is KOALA, that supports eligible Diamond OA Journals with a pledging model
  • in the UK, the Open Journals Collective works along similar lines
  • OACIP provides a community-driven framework that enables multiple stakeholders to fund Diamond Open Access journals.
  • Erudit.org in Canada offers support, provided certain criteria are fulfilled