This blog was posted in 2020, and our transformational agreements (TAs) have come a long way since. Read our 2022 update for editors Transformational Agreements: An Introduction for Editors, 2022 Update. 

	Over 85,000 articles are now covered by transitional agreements ranging in size from 8 up to 9,500 articles per annum.
	Number of articles covered by deals between publishers and consortia (source: ESAC registry)

As an editor, you may be increasingly aware of the move towards open access (OA) publishing as policy and funder mandates favor routes towards OA publication. There are several ways publishers, including Wiley, are addressing the increased need for OA publication, such as launching new OA journals or transitioning (flipping) titles to OA from a subscription model. Another way in which OA publishing is being made available on much larger scales than before is via transitional agreements. With frequent announcements by varying publishers, consortia, and societies, transitional agreements are becoming a common feature of the landscape. Here we give you an overview of what transitional agreements are, their benefits, and how they may affect your journal.

The read element allows authors from eligible institutions full access to all journals published by Wiley, including those published on behalf of our society partners. The publishing elements covers corresponding authors from participating institutions to use funds to publish their article OA in one of over 1,500 Wiley subscription journals, or our 160+ gold OA journals.

What is a transitional agreement?

A transitional agreement is when a consortium enters into a partnership with a publisher to enable a large-scale transition towards open access. Transitional agreements allow researchers at participating institutions unlimited read access to a publisher’s portfolio of journals, as well as funding to cover Article Publication Charges (APCs) when choosing to publish OA. See here for a primer and further information on transitional agreements. Wiley is committed to these large-scale transitions combining both access (read) and publishing.

As an editor, why do I need to know about transitional agreements?

The aim of each agreement is to help democratize open access publishing for all researchers at participating institutions covered under each consortium. By removing barriers to OA publication and ensuring that authors will not have to pay the APC themselves, you may start to notice effects on your journal, such as:

• Increased submissions – As Wiley enters transitional agreements with varying consortia, it may result in increased submissions to your journal from those countries. Each agreement presents an opportunity for growth of high-quality research in your journal, should these articles go on to be accepted.
• Increased readership – Each transitional agreement negotiated by Wiley means that researchers at participating institutions can access and read the content within your journal.
• Subject coverage is broadened – The uptake and availability of OA articles has been limited in research areas that traditionally have not had as much access to APC revenues, such as social sciences, humanities, and some physical science subjects. Transitional agreements are a way to create equity towards OA for all fields of research.
• Compliance with funder mandates – with more funders mandating open access publication, transitional agreements open routes to publishing OAs. For instance, open access publication in Wiley subscription journals covered under transitional agreements will be one route to compliance as outlined by the principles of Plan S.

Will transitional agreements make a difference to how I run my journal?

We do not expect any editorial policies or standards to change as a result of the transitional agreements that Wiley enters into. As an editor, you should still apply the same rigor of evaluation and peer review to each article submitted to your journals, irrespective of whether the article may be covered under a transitional agreement. The agreement in question will only come into effect for those articles that go on to be accepted in your journal.

How do I maximize engagement in my journal through transitional agreements?

There are varying engagement opportunities for you to consider:

• Commissioning content: to help drive submissions to your journal, content may be commissioned from participating institutions under each agreement. Please speak to your Wiley Journal Publishing Manager on how best to attract content into your journal, through targeted outreach to top authors and/ or leading institutions that publish research in line with your journal’s aims and scopes. It is important to bear in mind that there is no cap to the number of articles published under the Wiley-Projekt DEAL agreement, and commissioning activities can be carried out year-round. However, in the case of the remaining agreements, there are capped revenues (and therefore articles) that can be published in a calendar year. This means that not all authors that publish under Jisc, for instance, will have their APC covered. Read this blog post for further details on the Jisc agreement.
• Building and utilizing networks: it is worth reviewing your board to ensure there is increased representation from transitional agreement countries. Having a diverse editorial board allows each member to act as a champion for the agreements and encourage authors to submit to your title. Expanding your pool of reviewers also ensures transitional agreement representation and encourages researchers to submit to your journal if they know the APC is likely to be covered.
• Journal transfer networks: transfer networks allow authors to benefit from transitional agreements and get their work published quickly. Are there referral networks in place, or can you look to implement these within a journal network? This can mean either accepting transfers from related journals or referring your rejected articles (as long as they are still of sound scientific methodology) to another journal to consider publishing. Please speak to your Wiley Journal Publishing Manager for support in setting up transfer networks.

With each new agreement, are the same items covered?

Whilst each agreement is unique, and we encourage you to refer to our transitional agreement comparison table, there are some common elements in most of the transitional agreements we have agreed so far:

• They are for a set term
• The agreements combine both read access and open access publishing
• Most include funding OA publication via our subscription journals as well as our gold OA journals. 
• Most include a discount on the APC
• They cover research articles and reviews unless otherwise specified (NB – this may also vary by each participating institution covered under the agreement)

The transitional agreements we have in place at Wiley can be broadly categorized into 2 types of agreement: 

1. Full and Immediate Transition: combined “publish and read” approach, as shown through the Wiley-Projekt DEAL agreement in Germany. The agreement covers researchers at participating institutions to publish uncapped numbers of articles, whether that is publishing OA in our subscription journals, or through publication in our gold OA journal portfolio. Researchers are also able to access all content (the read element) published by Wiley. 
2. Stepped Transition: investment migrates from read to publish over the contract term, as is the case for Norway, Hungary, Sweden, Finland, and the UK. These agreements also still allow for full access to the Wiley portfolio of journals. However, there is a capped amount of revenue for the migration to OA each annum – if these funds are exhausted due to increased uptake by authors, then funding for OA article publication will cease for the remainder of that calendar year. The OA funds are then reset at the beginning of each new calendar year of the term,allowing OA publication to resume.

Should my journal fully transition to open access?

As Wiley enters into more transitional agreements, you may see more of your journal content becoming open access (depending on the corresponding author country). This may present an opportunity to consider transitioning (flipping) your journal to a fully gold OA model, especially in light of APCs being covered under the various agreements. However, transitioning to fully gold OA is a big decision, and requires detailed analysis to help inform that decision. We want you to be confident a transition to OA can be sustained and advise speaking to your Wiley Journal Publishing Manager to discuss the most appropriate strategy for your journal.

Resources:

For more information on open access, see here.

If authors covered under any of the transitional agreements in place at Wiley have any questions, they can contact AccountDashboardSupport@wiley.com for help.

See here for a full list of participating institutions that are covered in our transitional agreements. The list also includes institutions that have a Wiley Open Access Account (WOAA), which can help cover some, if not all, of the APC for authors.