From: Sally Morris <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Fri, 4 May 2012 08:51:30 +0100

What might attract a society?  Where do I start...

The services of experienced publishing professionals (which Society staff
generally are not), handling all stages of the journal's publication

Effective marketing (yes, certainly still needed for an OA journal),
including knowing what is needed to get journals included in the key
citation and other indices at the earliest possible stage

Inclusion in a high-visibility platform with many other journals

Infrastructure for handling not only submissions and peer review, but also
payment of publication charges

Etc....

Sally Morris
South House, The Street, Clapham, Worthing, West Sussex, UK
Email:  [log in to unmask]

-----Original Message-----
From: Sandy Thatcher <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Wed, 2 May 2012 22:28:08 -0500

What could possibly motivate a society publisher to outsource its journals
to a commercial publisher using an OA model?  The society needs no extra
prestige beyond what it as a society already has. Under an OA model it would
have some responsibility for raising money to make the OA model work. It
would have no financial return from the commercial publisher to help support
its other activities.  Am I missing something?

Sandy Thatcher