When does the APS AuthorChoice program go into effect?
The program takes effect July 1, 2007.
How did the APS determine the $2,000 or $3000 Author Choice fee?
For research articles, the Author Choice fee was determined by calculating the real average cost ($3,000) of publishing an article in an APS journal, and subtracting the actual average amount already paid by authors in author fees (page charges and color fees). The Author Choice fee for review articles is $3,000, because there are no other fees paid by authors of review articles.
The Author Choice fee was designed to completely cover the cost of publishing an article. If enough authors choose open access, the journals will become open access, and we will forego subscription revenue for an author-pays revenue system.
What license or copyright agreement applies to my AuthorChoice article?
Articles for which authors have purchased the AuthorChoice option are covered by the Creative Commons "CC-BY" license. So long as users properly attribute the work (complete APS journal citation, including DOI number), users are free to copy, distribute, and transmit the work, to adapt the work, and to make commercial use of the work (but not in any way that suggests that APS endorses the user or the use of the work). For complete terms, go to the Creative Commons website.
Are there any other charges involved besides the APS AuthorChoice fee?
For research articles, yes. In addition to the Author Choice fee, the customary author fees (such as page charges and color charges) apply. These will be billed to you separately when you receive your page proofs.
My grant does not cover the OA fee. Does this mean I have to wait for the traditional 12 month release period?
Some institutions and funding agencies are underwriting the AuthorChoice fee on behalf of their researchers. Check with your department head, librarian or funding agency to learn if your institution is one of them.
My research is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). If I pay the AuthorChoice fee, can I make the results immediately available in PubMed Central (PMC)?
Yes.
My research is funded by the Wellcome Trust, or another funding agency that requires that I make my research article free in PMC within six months of publication. Can AuthorChoice help me meet this requirement?
Yes. Paying the fee will allow you to meet these requirements.
How do I pay the fee? Can you invoice a third party?
Here’s how it works: In your article acceptance letter there will be a link to a payment form, which you will download if you are taking the Author Choice option for open access. Once your payment (check, credit card, or purchase order) is processed, your online article will be made free to all. The remainder of the author fees (page charges, color charges, cost of reprints) will be billed later.
Once I pay the Author Choice fee, am I still required to obtain permission to use figures, graphs, etc. from my article?
Yes. Author Choice means that you have elected to allow scientists, researchers, and others full access to your work, at no charge to them, immediately instead of one year after the article’s publication. This is an issue of public access timing, which is different from copyright. Upon payment of the fee, the APS is allowing you to post your article in PubMedCentral if mandated by your funding agency, without asking permission.
If my article is accepted for publication today, when will it become open access?
As soon as your payment (check, credit card, or purchase order) is processed, your online article will be made free to all. If we process payment while your article is published in manuscript form (Articles in PresS), it will be made open access, and the final version of your article, published in the online issue of the journal, will also be open access.
My article was published by APS before July 1, 2007. Can I pay now to make it open access?
Yes, but remember that your article, like all articles published in APS journals, will be made free 12 months after it is published in the journal issue, regardless of whether or not you pay the Author Choice fee. APS will not prorate the fee for a partial year of open access.
Does the APS AuthorChoice option apply to all APS publications?
Our 10 peer-reviewed research journals, the American Journal of Physiology – Cell Physiology; American Journal of Physiology – Endocrinology and Metabolism; American Journal of Physiology – Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology; American Journal of Physiology – Heart and Circulatory Physiology; American Journal of Physiology – Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology; American Journal of Physiology – Regulatory, Integrative & Comparative Physiology; American Journal of Physiology – Renal Physiology; Journal of Applied Physiology; Journal of Neurophysiology; and Physiological Genomics are all eligible for the AuthorChoice option.
Does the APS Author Choice option apply to review articles?
The fee to make invited review articles published in the journals listed above free is $3,000 because there are no other author fees.
I still have additional questions. Who can I contact?
The ability to help you relies in part on referring you to the proper department. For questions about payment and processing, please send an email to CVillemez@The-APS.org. If you have questions about the policy itself, please email RScheman@The-APS.org.