Publisher FAQ

Path to Open is a community-supported model to publish scholarly ebooks in the humanities and social sciences sustainably and equitably.

As part of nonprofit ITHAKA, JSTOR shares a mission with libraries and presses to bring about equitable access and impact for the entire scholarly community. This is why we are collaborating with university presses on Path to Open, a new, multi-year pilot program designed to increase access to diverse ideas and research. It offers sustainable open access solutions, supports the nonprofit university press community, and invests in authors and their scholarship, increasing the impact of their work.

• What is the maximum number of university presses JSTOR is looking to secure to participate in the Path to Open pilot?
  We have exceeded our original goal of at least 30 university presses to participate prior to launch in October 2023, and we continue to work with publishers interested in joining the program. Our goal is to support all university presses interested in joining, but during the course of the pilot, we plan to limit this to 50 publishers.
  • What are the minimum and maximum number of titles a university press can contribute to the pilot each year?
    It will depend on the number of publishers that join the program, as our target is 300 titles to be published each year after the initial launch year in 2023. Based on feedback from publishers, there was an expressed desire to provide titles in ranges of 5-15 each year. We are not setting a minimum number of titles, as we understand that the number of titles published may vary each year and some smaller publishers may not be able to meet the requirement.
    • Are there requirements to the publication/copyright year date that can be published in this program?
      JSTOR will accept titles based on the copyright year in the current calendar year they are published for the first time. If the copyright year is later than the current calendar year, the title will be released in the calendar year that aligns to the copyright year.
      • When will a title published in Path to Open be made available as an open access title to the public?
        There will be a three-year embargo to titles published in this program prior to them becoming open access. For example, a title released with a 2023 copyright year released in the 2023 calendar year will become open access and available to all users on any supporting platform in January of 2026. The open access flip date will always be in the month of January 3 years after the selection year.
        • When can a university press expect to get paid for titles that are published in the Path to Open program?
          Per the Path to Open Rider, JSTOR will pay each publisher $5,000 per title published in the program by March 31 of the following calendar year the title was published in. For example, a title with a 2023 copyright year released in the 2023 calendar year will be paid by March 31, 2024. However, we strive to pay publishers earlier than this timeline, and will notify appropriate parties ahead of said payments.
          • Do I need to pay my authors royalties using my Path to Open payment?
            JSTOR does not have any set parameters or guidelines on how to use or issue your $5,000 payment, as it will depend on each publisher’s agreements with their authors. We recommend discussing this with colleagues in your organization or with other publishers participating in the program.
            • How are published titles made available to libraries under the Path to Open model?
              Institutions will be required to pay an annual subscription fee to be able to access the current copyright year the publishers release in Path to Open each year, in addition to the titles that have not yet converted to open access. After the selected books are sent to JSTOR and go live per their publication schedule, libraries will gain automatic access to them. Please ensure that these books are tagged correctly in your metadata and sent in a timely manner so that there is no delay in libraries gaining access to them.
              • When should a university press register titles for inclusion in the program? Will there be a deadline?
                We are asking publishers to submit any title they know will be published in a specific calendar year and with rights cleared to submit the title at either the end of September or the end of November, prior to the upcoming publication year with a final opportunity to submit titles by the end of March in the calendar year they are published. If publishers need to know if a book is accepted to the program ahead of these deadlines, please follow the instructions in our Toolkit for Submitting Titles for Review.
                • What is the workflow for submitting titles for inclusion to Path to Open?
                  

                  Publishers provide books for potential inclusion throughout the year, and during various intervals JSTOR will review these submissions. Titles are submitted for review on this rolling basis using a Path to Open Submission Template (previously called the Pre-Delivery Metadata Template) which is given to each publisher during onboarding for Path to Open. This is a link to an excel sheet that can be used by anyone on staff at the press for submitting titles. For more information, please see this Toolkit for Submitting Titles for Review. Once the selection process has concluded, JSTOR will notify publishers in their Submission Template and via email. At this point, chosen books must be removed from standard library ebook distribution channels, while the rest can proceed through normal workflows as per usual. Once books are available/published, metadata, PDFs, and covers must be sent to JSTOR using a publisher specific SFTP space. Please note that the act of filling out the Path to Open Submission Template does not deliver books to JSTOR, so please follow our delivery specifications. To summarize:

                  1. Publishers submit their titles for potential inclusion in their Path to Open Submission Template.
                  2. Once the March/Sept/Nov deadlines come to pass, JSTOR will review all titles submitted and select which ones across all publishers will be included over the course of two weeks.
                  3. Publishers are notified via email and in their Path to Open Submission Template which books were chosen and can be included in the program.
                  4. Publishers can then send metadata, PDFs, and covers for the selected books once it is available, using the metadata specs provided here.
                • Are there best practices that can be shared for the ISBN registration of these titles?
                  It should follow the same process as other titles made available today.
                  • Are there best practices that can be shared for the Creative Commons license for these titles?
                    Publishers and their authors are free to choose whatever Creative Commons License they would like to use for their Path to Open books.
                    We are asking publishers to please email Content Support and provide the future Creative Commons license of their title before it is scheduled to become open access.
                    • Is there a way to send books in Path to Open directly to JSTOR outside of my normal file distribution workflow?
                      Yes. If you are concerned about accidentally sending books in Path to Open to other platforms, there is a way to send the books directly to JSTOR. Please contact Content Support to receive a metadata template and FTP login.
                      • Are there special requirements or acknowledgements needed for the copyright page of the books? Do I need a Creative Commons license or blurb that acknowledges Path to Open?

                        The below verbiage should be included in the electronic copy of the book: “This book will be made open access within three years of publication thanks to Path to Open, a program developed in partnership between JSTOR, the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), University of Michigan Press, and The University of North Carolina Press to bring about equitable access and impact for the entire scholarly community, including authors, researchers, libraries, and university presses around the world. Learn more at https://about.jstor.org/path-to-open/.”

                        Starting in 2024 and moving forward, we request that all print copies of the books published in Path to Open include the verbiage above, assuming the print copy has not yet been processed/distributed.

                        JSTOR is not requiring an updated copyright page to be sent at the time of open access conversion, which might often include an OA eISBN or a Creative Commons license. Since the above verbiage explains the program and notes that it will be open access in the future, an updated copyright page will not be required for the open access version.

                        • When should I deliver my titles to JSTOR?
                          JSTOR is now accepting deliveries for 2025 selected titles, and has created a new delivery location where Path to Open metadata and assets can be uploaded. Please get in touch with Content Support if you have not yet received information on how to access this location.
                          • Do I need to tell my metadata distributor (such as BiblioVault or Coresource/Ingram) to do something special?

                            Please work with your metadata distributor to meet the identified metadata specifications where possible, and also to deliver these titles to the new Path to Open-specific location. While JSTOR has had discussions with CoreSource, BiblioVault, and Firebrand about the program, we are not in a position to alter publisher configurations, change title management systems, or set up new delivery channels on your behalf. Ideally, the press will be able to flag or mark your Path to Open titles in some fashion in your title management system(s). Then, the press should alert your distribution partners to the appropriate delivery parameters explaining what to do with their Path to Open titles.

                            If you have not received the metadata specifications, please get in touch with Content Support.

                            • Can I publish my ebooks through existing library sales channels for ebooks? If not, what are the limitations and why?
                              The electronic versions of titles published in the Path to Open program will only be available in the academic market through this model. Any electronic version of your chosen books should not be available for sale through other library aggregators or through direct sales models to libraries.

                              The single-user and library print copy of books can be made available through existing sales channels such as Gardners, Baker & Taylor, Erasmus, Centraal Boekhuis, etc. and all other forms of these titles can be made available for sale through consumer channels such as Kindle, iBookstore, etc. The Path to Open working group made this decision to limit the costs in supporting the program by streamlining the management of library participation and contributions, allowing for more revenue to be provided to the publishers and for more ebooks to be published in this program.

                              • I’ve accidentally sent out the ebook version of my Path to Open title to a library aggregator, what should I do?
                                Please immediately withdraw the library ebook from that partner and confirm it has been removed from sale.
                                • Will there always be a set price of $5,000 per title published in the Path to Open program?
                                  JSTOR will guarantee $5,000 per title published during the pilot phase of the program. If the pilot is successful, we are projecting there to be a surplus in the program within a couple of years after the pilot completion. The publishers participating in the Path to Open working group will then be deciding to distribute the surplus to titles already in the program through a usage pool distribution and/or to use the surplus to publish more titles in the program.
                                  • Will JSTOR still support publishing open access ebooks on the platform that are immediately made open access?
                                    JSTOR will continue to increase the number of open access ebooks published on our platform as we have done in the past. For publishers participating in this program, JSTOR will waive all fees for current copyright year open access titles each year a publisher participates in the program.
                                    • How can individuals not associated with an academic institution access single titles while embargoed?
                                      Individual book acquisitions are not available on JSTOR. Individuals will be able to purchase single titles through the standard print channels publishers have in place, in addition to sales channels to individual consumers, such as Amazon. Lastly, JSTOR will support interlibrary loan (ILL) for all chapters of a book from academic institutions who have access through a paid subscription.
                                      • How can authors gain access to their ebooks published in Path to Open?
                                        JSTOR will provide each university press with access to all titles they have published in the Path to Open program. This access can be shared with the press’ authors.
                                        • What happens to titles published in Path to Open during the pilot, if it is not officially launched as a program?
                                          A decision will be made by April 30, 2026 to determine if the program is officially launched from the pilot. If a decision is made not to launch the program, due to a lack of library participation and/or publisher interest to continue after the pilot, then all titles published during the pilot will be converted to open access prior to December 31, 2027. Publishers would receive payment by March 31, 2027 for any titles released in the pilot in 2026.
                                          • How will titles be selected for inclusion across publishers?

                                            JSTOR will be using a methodology to select the 300 titles to be published each year from 2024-2026 that is expected to follow what we used for 2023. This includes applying a weight based on the subject areas the titles are in that are the highest used for paid and open access ebooks on JSTOR. We will also apply a weight based on the subjects with the highest usage when paid access ebooks are converted to open access. Lastly, an additional weight will be applied to titles that support current demand on the platform based on user search terms and topics. There will also be publisher requests that will be considered when finalizing the publication list. The goal is to ensure that titles are published across all publishers in the ranges set and to ensure we continue to support bibliodiversity.

                                            • How can I measure the success (or impact) of my ebooks published in Path to Open when embargoed and when they are converted to open access?

                                              All participating publishers will have access to a usage portal where they can directly pull statistics for both licensed and open access books. Publishers will be able to compare usage during the gated and open access phases of the pilot.  JSTOR will also be releasing annual updates on the library participation and overall usage of the Path to Open program to evaluate and measure the impact of the program across the academic community.

                                              • How can I learn more about Path to Open?
                                                Please contact JSTOR with any additional questions you may have about Path to Open.

        Disclaimer. This document was last updated January 2025.