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  • Nov 08, 2011 @ 04:15am

    Profit vs. Costs

    One small hiccup: You're talking about PROFIT, not REVENUE. So you wouldn't be covering the COSTS (like, for example, my salary--I work for Springer) with that fee. Especially given that operating margins would typically be, say 10% after EBIDTA or so.

    So the APC has to cover the REVENUE, which is the costs PLUS the profit*.

    NB: This should not be taken as not supporting Open Access, only quibbling about the APC cost. And, of course, my opinions are my own, not Springer's etc., etc.

    Scott Epstein
    *FWIW, University Presses, like OUP, ALSO like to make profit. They just turn theirs over the University Trustees (i.e., "shareholders") rather than to an equity fund or stockholders.