Hi Ramy,

I don't think you should necessarily equate high impact journals, by that I am think you mean good quality journals with any particular publishing model. There is also the issue of hybrid journals that publish Open Access and Pay for View articles in the same journal.

I think the drivers for change are the research funders [ See https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-06178-7 ] who mandate Open Access publication and authors who may see advantages in Open Access publishing. In the end researchers and their funders will find mechanisms to identify quality research whatever publishing form dominates in five years time.

A more radical question might be will journals exist in five years time? or will they be supplanted by new publishing forms?

BW Matt

Open access journals have certain advantages. Free access prompts high readership and citations. However, the cost of production has to be borne by somebody!.

Hi Ramy,

I don't think you should necessarily equate high impact journals, by that I am think you mean good quality journals with any particular publishing model. There is also the issue of hybrid journals that publish Open Access and Pay for View articles in the same journal.

I think the drivers for change are the research funders [ See https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-06178-7 ] who mandate Open Access publication and authors who may see advantages in Open Access publishing. In the end researchers and their funders will find mechanisms to identify quality research whatever publishing form dominates in five years time.

A more radical question might be will journals exist in five years time? or will they be supplanted by new publishing forms?

BW Matt

I asked this question when I started to notice that some hybrid journals started to be fully open access ones.

Some researchers in developing countries will suffer to pay for publications in open access journals.