Read the full story at Phys.org.
Open-access scientific journals came along with the promise of free access to information. No longer would the availability of research papers be hidden behind paywalls, and papers could be submitted from any institution equally. Instead of subscription fees, these journals charged researchers for submitting papers on an individual basis.
Mega-journals took the open-access model and ran with it. Some of the biggest mega-journals were the early open-access journals PLoS One and Scientific Reports. Many other mega-journals have surfaced, some converting from traditional subscription-based models and all populating the publishing space with subject-specific sub-journals.
An opinion letter, “The Rapid Growth of Mega-Journals Threats and Opportunities,” published in the journal JAMA, addresses some of the pressing issues regarding the mass publishing of scientific literature.
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