whither university presses?

[Terry Ehling <teresa_ehling@cornell.edu>]

A signal article of interest to this readership, from a frequent 
contributor to this list:

"The Wisdom of Oz: The Role of the University Press in Scholarly
Communications"
Joseph J. Esposito
Journal of Electronic Publishing, 10:1, Winter 2007
http://hdl.handle.net/2027/spo.3336451.0010.103

The current debate about scholarly communications is a two-sided 
one, with advocates of Open Access policies lining up against 
supporters of traditional publishing.  This is unfortunate, as 
any plausible future for academic publishing will be pluralistic, 
with a variety of models and ventures laboring side by side.  A 
particular segment that warrants much closer attention is the 
world of the university press, which combines many of the best 
elements of OA publishing (mission-based, fair trading practices) 
with the demonstrated strengths of traditional publishing 
(editorial review, functioning business model).  Further, as 
university presses are themselves a part of academic 
institutions, their programs can be used to provide a new form of 
welcome competition to commercial organizations, who do not 
necessarily proceed with the academy's best interests at heart.

Terry Ehling
Director
Center for Innovative Publishing
Cornell University Library
Ithaca, NY  14853