PeerJ to Stop Accepting Preprints at the End of September, Will Only Provide Peer-Reviewed Open Access Journal Publishing Going Forward

From a PeerJ Blog Post by PeerJ Co-Founder, Jason Hoyt:

PeerJ Preprints is a free service that launched in April 2013, just two months after publishing began in our more traditional peer-reviewed journal, PeerJ. At the time, there were no dedicated venues for preprints in biology or the life sciences. How quickly has the landscape changed!

When we launched preprints, we did wonder at the time if they would make a lasting return (see “Who killed the Preprint, and could it make a return?” Scientific American, April 2013.) It didn’t take long to receive an answer, which is of course a YES. Now, dozens of preprint “servers” exist for the rapid communication of results across various subjects within biology.

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We started the PeerJ organization primarily to provide a superior peer-reviewed experience shaped by its Academic Editors. A secondary goal was to bring preprints back to biology. As the community’s appetite for preprints has now been cemented, we too want to focus our efforts more fully on our portfolio of peer-reviewed journals and primary mission. While PeerJ Preprints has been successful and pioneering, the academic community is now well-served with other preprint venue options (and new ones are continuously being created to fill necessary areas, many of which are not tied so closely to a specific publication).

With a sad heart, the time has come to stop accepting new submissions at PeerJ Preprints, secure in the knowledge that having helped lead this approach there are many good venues for authors to use instead. We will continue working with other preprint services and partners to support researchers in sharing their work in new innovative ways.

Learn More, Read the Complete Post (approx. 890 words)

Filed under: News, Open Access, Publishing