Stuart M. Shieber. Equity for Open-Access Journal Publishing. PLoS Biol, 7(8), 08 2009. [doi]
Open-access journals, which provide access to their scholarly articles freely and without limitations, are at a systematic disadvantage relative to traditional closed-access journal publishing and its subscription-based business model. A simple, cost-effective remedy to this inequity could put open-access publishing on a path to become a sustainable, efficient system.