SCOAP3 sends invitation to tender to publishing partners

The high-energy physics (HEP) open-access consortium SCOAP3 has issued its invitation to tender to leading publishers of high-quality, peer-reviewed journals carrying HEP content, that had previously agreed to the key SCOAP3 principles in a qualifying market survey.

This process is said to be the culmination of one year of work, during which an international team of experts, with considered input from the publishing industry and the support of CERN, transformed the SCOAP3 idea into a set of concrete specifications and a clear agreement framework.

Publishers are expected to submit their bids by mid June. SCOAP3 will then review the bids and identify the publishing partners and selected journals to which a contract for peer review, open access and other publishing services could be awarded. This competitive process will take into account the price per article and a set of defined quality criteria, says SCOAP3.

SCOAP3 aims to award contracts by end of the third quarter of 2012 and for services to commence in January 2014.