Universities vow to set up joint publishing platform

Fourteen universities from five European countries are reportedly working together to set up an online open-access publishing platform “as an alternative to the current journal system”.

A website that launched this week says that universities from the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK will establish the platform, called University Journals, in 2020. The website directs those interested in learning more to contact Max Haring at the library of the University of Amsterdam, one of the participating institutions listed on the site.

University Journals will use existing publishing infrastructure so that it “will require only modest resources”, the website says. It “will focus on convenience for researchers, efficient and cost-effective operation and fast turnaround times”.