Conference Presentation

PUBDB-2026-01295

http://join2-wiki.gsi.de/foswiki/pub/Main/Artwork/join2_logo100x88.png When Transparency Meets Reality – Analysing Publisher Cost Breakdowns in the Brandenburg Open Access Monograph Fund

Himpsl-Zeltner, A. (Corresponding author)

2026

This record in other databases:  

Please use a persistent id in citations: doi:10.3204/PUBDB-2026-01295

Abstract: Transparent cost breakdowns are a core requirement of open cost approaches – yet in practice, they are far from straightforward to analyse. Within the Brandenburg Open Access Monograph Fund, publishers are required to provide detailed cost breakdowns for funded publications. For the past four years, we have systematically analysed these data, anonymised them, and made them openly available on GitHub.This talk presents key learnings from this ongoing work: Which cost parameters remain relatively stable over time? Where do cost increases become visible? And which new or previously uncommon cost items are appearing in publishers’ calculations? A key challenge emerging from the analysis is that cost parameters often function less as empirically grounded figures and more as flexible constructs aligned with funding thresholds. As a result, apparent transparency does not necessarily translate into meaningful comparability or insight into actual production costs.At the same time, we reflect on the practical challenges of working with these data – including inconsistent terminology, varying levels of granularity, and structural limits to comparability. By sharing these experiences, the presentation aims to contribute to discussions around cost monitoring, publisher negotiations, and the further development of open cost practices.Biography:Dr Anja Himpsl-Zeltner has been Head of Open Access Brandenburg (Vernetzungs- und Kompetenzstelle Open Access Brandenburg) since 2021. Prior to this, she worked in the open access departments of academic publishers.

---

Research Program(s):

1. 899 - ohne Topic (POF4-899) (POF4-899)
2. DFG project G:(GEPRIS)457354095 - openCost 2: automatisierte, standardisierte Lieferung und offene Bereitstellung von Publikationskosten und Verlagsvereinbarungen (457354095) (457354095)

Experiment(s):

1. No specific instrument

---

Database coverage:
; ; Hosted Content

---