Consolidation and rising prices are contributing factors. As the market consolidates, the level of competition goes down and publishers gain more leverage to raise prices. Publishers are scrambling to buy out small journals and secure publishing rights from professional organizations to increase their market share in this lucrative market niche. Physical libraries are major sources of sales for the scientific publishing industry, but librarians are canceling the purchase of scholarly journals and books in fields like science, technology, medicine, law and economics because of rising costs even though library budgets for these purchases are expanding because the average journal price has tripled in the last 14 years. Professors are desperate to publish their work, but with the current trend of dropping demand, their opportunities are drying up.
Consolidation is a sure sign of a contracting market.
While the physical journal market contracts, the virtual market is expanding. Ph.D.s will look for other sources to publish their writing. All we have to do is establish WSN as a prestigious source to fulfill their publishing need. Journal publishing's costs are minimal because researchers contribute papers free, to advance their careers and others review and edit their submissions for free. The publishers have enormous power because these journals are the lifeblood of scholarship.