Open access

BioMed Central's open access policy means that all research articles are freely and universally accessible online, authors retain copyright to their work, and all articles are archived in an open access repository (PubMed Central). All articles published in BioMed Central journals are also included in PubMed.

BioMed Central's commitment to open access is based on the view that unhindered access to research is essential to the rapid and efficient communication of science.

Journal web sites

BioMed Central's independent journals are primarily online publications. However, an annual print edition can be made available for purchase on demand, if desired.

To provide consistency for users and to ensure maximum efficiency, all our journal web sites are based on a standard template, which offers various customization options. For examples, see Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology and Malaria Journal.

We also have standardized instructions for authors, whose consistency makes life simpler for authors. For an example see http://www.malariajournal.com/info/instructions/

License agreement

Authors who publish in any of BioMed Central's independent journals retain copyright to their articles, and license their article to be distributed under BioMed Central's standard license agreement. This allows anyone to disseminate and reproduce the article, as long as proper attribution of authorship is given and citation details are provided.

Funding open access - article-processing charges

Starting a new independent journal with BioMed Central, or transferring an existing journal to BioMed Central is completely free of charge.

Under the open access model, there are no subscription charges for users. Instead, there have an article-processing charge for each accepted article, payable by the author, typically using funds from his/her institution or funding body.

Researchers at institutions that are members of BioMed Central do not have to pay the article-processing charge directly as it is covered by a payment from their institution. For more information see our Institutional Membership page.

For the independent journals, the standard article-processing charge is currently GBP800 for each accepted manuscript (approximately US$1610/ €1185). BioMed Central waives charges for authors who lack funds to pay article-processing charges – such waivers are administered by the publisher.

Subsidising article-processing charges

Journals may opt to subsidise article-processing charges by obtaining and using grants from institutions or charitable organisations. Educational grants from industry are also a possibility, although journals should consider their editorial independence when making such arrangements.

Some journals are published in association with a scientific society that use part of the membership fee towards publication costs. We are happy to discuss such arrangements.

Editorial stipends and administrative expenses

BioMed Central's standard independent journal agreement includes a stipend payable to the Editor(s)-in-Chief. If the journal also requires revenue to cover additional administrative expenses, this may be negotiable.

Editor-in-Chief criteria

For an Editor-in-Chief to be successful we need to ensure that he/she has sufficient research experience to be able to deal with the numerous editorial issues that arise when running a journal, and is of a high enough standing in their field to bring credibility to the journal.

When considering a proposed Editor-in-Chief we would expect he/she to have:

• Carried out multiple research studies, as a Principal Investigator.
• Published a significant number of research articles relevant to the scope of the journal, particularly within the last five years, being the senior author on a large percentage of these.
• Received a number of research grants from major funding bodies.
• Held positions within societies or with other journals in the field.
• Given presentations at relevant international conferences, or to have been involved in organising such conferences.

We understand that some of these criteria may not be met because of the nature of the field or the current position of the Editor-in-Chief, hence rather than being a strict list of requirements, the conditions above should be used as a guide for the factors that will be taken into account when assessing a potential Editor-in-Chief.

If you would like to propose a new journal, but do not meet the above criteria, you will need to recruit an Editor-in-Chief before submitting a proposal. He/she must be willing to take an active role in the new journal and will need to sign an agreement to serve as Editor-in-Chief.

Societies wishing to start a new journal are also advised to select an Editor-in-Chief before submitting a proposal, although this is not essential.

Workload

BioMed Central has developed tools for researchers to run journals under their own editorial control (hence the term "independent" journals). These currently consist of an online manuscript submission system, a tool used to invite peer-reviewers for manuscripts, and an online article-production system. Additional systems to help editors manage their journals are currently in development.

Starting a journal, however, is about more than just handling manuscripts and updating the website. You will have full editorial control over the journal.

Prospective editors must be willing to recruit an active Editorial Board, pursue research manuscripts from the field, invite/commission commentaries, reviews and other types of articles and help us actively market the journal. It is advisable for prospective editors to consider recruiting some administrative assistance (either secretarial or from junior colleagues).

Please note that although BioMed Central will handle article production, we do not currently provide copyediting services for manuscripts. Prospective editors who would like to copyedit accepted manuscripts will need to organise this themselves, although we can help with such arrangements, if requested.

Peer Review

All articles published in our independent journals, with the possible exception of Book Reviews and Editorials, must be peer reviewed. It is the responsibility of Editors-in-Chief to devise a peer-review policy and organise the peer-review system following launch of the journal.

Prospective editors must decide whether their journal will have "open" or "closed" peer review: peer review is closed when the authors do not know the names of the reviewers (the standard for most journals). Peer review is open when authors do know the names of reviewers. In open peer review, reviewers are also asked to declare any competing interests, and a full publication history, including the reviewers’ reports, is published with the final article.

If you agree to the above, and would like to make a proposal, please see 'What to include in a new journal proposal'.