Publishing needs regulation, says former Commission official

Open-access expert says consolidation and big deals require the oversight of a regulator

The European Commission’s former open-access envoy and head of open science policy has said that academic publishing needs a dedicated regulatory body to prevent a small number of publishers gaining a “tight grip” on research outputs.

Jean-Claude Burgelman, now a professor of open science policy at the Free University of Brussels, said the buyout of innovative publishing companies by larger, established rivals—and these giants’ growing use of large-scale deals with universities—could limit researchers’ choices and remove downward pressure on prices.