Back Talk--The Great Flip

The flipping discourse has moved into the library and information space. Most librarians who've worked near serials have heard or given "The Talk." You know how it goes: 17th century scientists invented the journal; the 1950s post-war boom innovated the commercially published scientific journal (a miracle of quick, cheap, and easy access in its time); late 20th century bloat brought about awareness of the serials pricing crisis; then the Internet brought the e-journal; and quickly thereafter the Big Deal; and just as quickly thereafter the ideal of Open Access. If ten years ago Open Access was for idealists, now it's mainstream. How do people get there, at a greatly increased pace, is today's question. These days, they have many OA business modes and models, for example the article processing charge, institutional subsidization, freemium, green, and numerous variants. Recently, analytical work of the Max Planck Institute and others has raised the profile of "flipping."