PLOS and Carnegie Mellon University announce APC-free open access publishing agreement

SAN FRANCISCO — Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and the Public Library of Science (PLOS) today announced a two-year open access agreement that allows researchers to publish in PLOS’ suite of journals without incurring article processing charges (APC). This partnership brings together two organizations that believe researchers should be able to access content freely and make their work available publicly, regardless of their access to funds.

“The evidence is undeniable — open access research enables the convergence of disciplines that drives scientific innovations,” said Keith Webster, dean of Libraries and director of Emerging and Integrative Media Initiatives for Carnegie Mellon University. “This agreement with PLOS gives our researchers more avenues to provide their work to the public, and, in doing so, increases readership and opportunities for societal impact.”

Under the agreement, which will be implemented in July, Carnegie Mellon will be charged an annual fixed flat rate over the two-year term, which will be based on prior years’ publication levels. CMU researchers will have unlimited opportunity to publish in PLOS journals over these two years and will not be charged any APC. This pilot will further PLOS’ mission of making open access publishing available to all while ensuring that its journals include research from authors representing a diverse array of disciplines, career stages and geographies.

“The agreement with Carnegie Mellon University is yet another step in our goal of empowering authors who want to participate in open access publishing, and it continues the momentum following our recent agreement with the University of California,” said Sara Rouhi, director of Strategic Partnerships for PLOS. “Both agreements demonstrate our effort to build a truly ‘open to read, open to publish’ environment for authors as well as our commitment to experimentation with our library partners.”

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About the Public Library of Science

PLOS is a nonprofit, open access publisher empowering researchers to accelerate progress in science and medicine by leading a transformation in research communication. Since our founding in 2001, PLOS journals have helped break boundaries in research communication to provide more opportunities, choice, and context for researchers and readers. For more information, visit

http://www.

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About Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon, cmu.edu, is a private, internationally ranked research university with programs in areas ranging from science, technology and business, to public policy, the humanities and the arts. More than 14,000 students in the university’s seven schools and colleges benefit from a small student-to-faculty ratio and an education characterized by its focus on creating and implementing solutions for real problems, interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation.