A library publishing service usually publishes academic journals and often provides a broader range of publishing services as well.[3] This can include publishing other formats such as scholarly monographs and conference proceedings.[4] It generally has a preference for open access publishing.[5]
Library publishing often focuses on electronic publishing rather than print, thus complementing the role of traditional academic presses.[6] Sometimes a library and a university press based at the same institution will form a partnership, with each focusing on their own area of expertise.[7][8] For example, the University of Pittsburgh library publishing service publishes peer-reviewed journals and also collaborates with the university press to publish open access monographs.[9]
Library publishing has a long history and has been around since before the Internet.[12]
In 1990, academic libraries published two of the first scholarly electronic journals on the Internet. The University of Houston Libraries began publishing The Public-Access Computer Systems Review[13][14] and the Virginia Tech University Libraries began publishing the Journal of the International Academy of Hospitality Research.[15]
The Synergies project (2007–2011) was a collaboration between different Canadian universities to create infrastructure to support institutional publishing activities.[16] A survey conducted by Hahn in 2008 found that at that time 65% of research libraries in North America either had a library publishing service or were considering creating one.[7]
In 2011 in the UK, Jisc funded three library publishing projects: Huddersfield Open Access Publishing (HOAP) at the University of Huddersfield, SAS Open Journals at the University of London, and EPICURE at UCL.[17]
The Library Publishing Coalition was launched in 2013 to provide a hub for library publishing activities.[5] In October 2013, during Open Access Week, they launched a Library Publishing Directory[18] which contains information about library publishing activities at 115 academic and research libraries.[19]
↑Harboe-Ree, Cathrine (2007). "Just advanced librarianship: the role of academic libraries as publishers". Australian Academic & Research Libraries38 (1): 21. doi:10.1080/00048623.2007.10721264.
↑Maxim, G.E. 1965. A history of library publishing, 1600 to the present day. Thesis approved for Fellowship of the Library Association.
↑Bailey, Charles W. Jr. (January 1991). "Electronic (Online) Publishing in Action . . . The Public-Access Computer Systems Review and Other Electronic Serials". ONLINE15: 28–35.
↑Ensor, Pat; Thomas Wilson (1997). "The Public-Access Computer Systems Review: Testing the Promise". The Journal of Electronic Publishing3 (1): 28–35. doi:10.3998/3336451.0003.106.