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Elsevier’s online-only publishing signals opportunities for lawyers and other professionals

November 18, 2013

20131118-231416.jpg Elsevier’s Gaëlle Hull announced today the launch of a new journal, the Journal of Water Process Engineering.

No story in a new publication from Elsevier. Part of Reed-Elsevier (LexisNexis parent), the company is a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products, including 2,000 journals.

The story is that this journal is an online-only journal. In addition, through at least 2014, the papers published in the journal will be freely available online.

Editors felt compelled to get the journal published now because of a compelling need for information and advances in the area.

I am sure this is not the first, nor will it be the last, online-only journal published by Elsevier. What is interesting is the door that’s opening here for more publishing by professionals – whether lawyers, doctors, scientists, engineers, or accountants.

Print publications require a broader audience than online publications. The publishing and distribution costs are greater. Online enables publishers to go after niches.

The result will be more published content by more professionals. That’s in journals and products published by the major players such as Elsevier.

In addition to publications from major publishers, why not self publishing from professionals and the organization which employ them? The barriers to entry are not near as great as with print. The intellect is within the control of these professionals.

Distribution is via the net and access may be free of charge, unlike traditional publishers such as Elsevier who charge for most access. Reputation enhancement and advancement of knowledge is the goal after all, not to profit from publishing.

Advancements in the delivery and discovery of online published content may eliminate the need for distribution by large brands. Peer review may become immediate via social collaboration.

Lawyers are already publishing thousands of blogs. Eight thousand lawyers are authoring blogs on the LexBlog Network alone. We may only be scratching the surface.

Networks such as the LexBlog Network could provide bodies of knowledge covering niches in the law, science, medicine, technology, and the like. Networks which become hubs of knowledge. Hubs which challenge the supremacy of today’s large publishers.

As Elsevier and other major publishers move to online publishing the door is opening to more publishing by professionals and the organizations who employ these professionals. Interesting days ahead.

Image courtesy of Flickr by Sean MacEntee.

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