MDPI Announces New Agreement Facilitating Open Access Publishing In Germany

MDPI and over 100 German institutions, led by ZB MED, have signed a major open-access publishing agreement effective 2025-2026. This deal introduces discounts on article processing charges (APCs), streamlined payment options, and a flat-fee model to optimise budgets and ease administration. It strengthens open science in Germany, enhancing global research visibility and accessibility.

MDPI, a prominent name in open-access publishing, has partnered with over 100 German universities and research institutions in a significant move aimed at enhancing accessibility to scientific research. The agreement, negotiated by ZB MED – Information Centre for Life Sciences, will take effect on 1 January 2025 and extend through 31 December 2026, benefiting researchers and institutions across Germany.

This collaboration seeks to streamline the gold open-access publishing process, offering institutions substantial discounts on article processing charges (APCs) while introducing innovative payment models. These include centralized invoicing, individual payment options, and the introduction of a flat-fee model. The latter allows institutions to forecast expenses accurately, optimising library budgets and reducing administrative burdens.

Peter Roth, Head of Publishing at MDPI, described the agreement as a milestone:

“MDPI can look back on over a decade of successful partnerships with German research institutions. The new agreement marks another milestone in our long-standing cooperation with the German scientific community. It reflects our commitment to delivering innovative solutions to promote open research and support researchers worldwide.”

Strengthening national and international research visibility

The agreement is designed to align with the shared goals of MDPI, ZB MED, and German research institutions to advance open science principles. By making scientific findings more visible and accessible internationally, the partnership underlines the importance of open access in fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing.

Petra Labriga, Head of Strategic License Management at ZB MED, commented on the value of the initiative:

“As one of the world’s leading Gold OA publishers, MDPI plays a central role in the German publishing landscape. We are particularly pleased to achieve considerable potential cost savings for scientific institutions and their authors at a national level through our negotiations.”

A decade of collaboration

This agreement builds on MDPI’s longstanding relationship with German research institutions. The opportunity for more institutions to join the consortium by early 2025 further extends the scope and impact of this collaboration. Adrian Stefan Zamfir, Institutional Partnership Manager for the DACH region, expressed gratitude towards ZB MED for their role in facilitating this agreement:

“We would like to thank the ZB MED consortium team for their excellent collaboration. This agreement will provide even more researchers in Germany access to MDPI’s reliable and efficient publication platform.”

This agreement exemplifies the growing global momentum toward open science and serves as a blueprint for future collaborations aimed at enhancing research accessibility and sustainability. Institutions interested in joining the consortium are encouraged to act promptly to benefit from the initiative.

About ZB MED

ZB MED – Information Centre for Life Sciences is a prominent infrastructure and research hub dedicated to life sciences information and data. Its mission is to support and enhance research that benefits both people and the environment, encompassing fields such as medicine, biodiversity, and environmental protection. ZB MED's activities are guided by strategic principles, including fostering collaborative research on regional, national, and global levels, advancing data science to enable analysis and generate knowledge, and providing sustainable access to information, literature, and data as a central infrastructure. The organisation also champions open and reproducible science by adhering to Open Science and FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) principles, while actively imparting knowledge and skills to advance scientific competencies.  

About MDPI

MDPI, headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, is a global leader in open-access publishing, offering a diverse portfolio of over 440 scientific journals covering a wide range of disciplines. The organisation is committed to advancing open science by fostering transparency, efficiency, and collaboration. Since its inception, MDPI has facilitated the publication of research by more than 3.7 million scientists, supported by a robust editorial process involving a vast network of dedicated reviewers and editors. With a team of over 6,500 employees, MDPI collaborates with over 800 academic institutions and 180 scientific societies globally, providing an array of services and products designed to benefit the research community. Its mission is to make scientific research accessible and impactful on a worldwide scale.