Business models of scholarly publishers: implications for open access

A set of parameters to analyze business models of scientific publishers, especially those that offer open access to their content for all or some of their journals, is presented and defined. A definition of the term “business model” that exceeds the old conceptual restriction tied to funding sources is given. This more complete view of the business model requires extending the analysis of funding sources to other economic and financial components as well as operational and strategic dimensions of the publisher. This allows a better and more authoritative interpretation and analysis of the various business models of scientific publishers