Elsevier signs first open-access deal in the United States; Science, November 25, 2019

Science News Staff, Science; Elsevier signs first open-access deal in the United States

"Publishing giant Elsevier has signed its first open-access deal with a U.S. institution, Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Inside Higher Ed reports. The arrangement, which CMU announced on 21 November, will allow CMU scholars to publish articles in any Elsevier journal on an immediately free-to-read basis. CMU researchers will also continue to have access to paywalled Elsevier articles, which previous contracts covered with subscription fees.

CMU did not disclose the cost of the arrangement, which has been a sticking point in Elsevier’s open-access negotiations with other research institutions. After the University of California system insisted on a price cut, Elsevier’s negotiations failed in February; in April, a research consortium in Norway cut a deal with Elsevier similar to CMU’s, while agreeing to a price hike. “All I can say is that we achieved the financial objectives we set out to achieve,” Keith Webster, dean of CMU’s university libraries and director of emerging and integrative media initiatives, tells Inside Higher Ed. 

CMU researchers only publish about 175 papers annually in Elsevier journals. That low volume gives Elsevier an opportunity to test the 4-year arrangement with relatively low financial risk."

Behind the EpiPen controversy are questions about patents granted to drugmaker; St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 9/4/16

Samantha Liss, St. Louis Post-Dispatch; Behind the EpiPen controversy are questions about patents granted to drugmaker:

"Drugmaker Mylan NV has received the brunt of criticism for alleged price-gouging on the lifesaving EpiPen, but other factors — and players — contributed to the monopoly it enjoys today, say experts familiar with the drug industry.

First approved in 1987, the EpiPen is protected from competition until 2025 by four patents. Three of those patents were awarded within the last six years."