Budget and Planning

Collections Update: Rethinking Subscription Models

The cost of journal subscriptions, particularly for major publisher packages, has become unsustainable for universities across North America, with prices expanding beyond many libraries’ budgets.

At the same time, Canadian universities are working through broader budget challenges due to several factors, including pressure on international student enrollments and increased operating costs.

UBC Library’s collections budget is impacted by these two situations. Almost 40 per cent of UBC Library’s budget put toward academic serials goes to package agreements with five large for-profit publishers: Elsevier, Springer, Taylor & Francis, Wiley and Sage. With increased inflation and ongoing fluctuations in the USD/CAD exchange rate, it is especially important for us to look strategically at our spending, and plan for the sustainability of our collections budget into the future.

Changes to Sage and PLOS

Effective December 31, 2025, UBC Library will end its “all titles” agreement with the publisher Sage, changing how you access some Sage titles moving forward. Based on extensive usage data, we will continue to subscribe to a select number of Sage titles at this time, and we will unsubscribe from titles that are less well used.

We are committed to helping you access the materials you need. UBC Library purchased all of Sage’s backfiles in order to provide library users with immediate access to all available articles in Sage titles through 2025. New articles within Sage titles we no longer subscribe to will continue to be available through interlibrary loan, which often provides same-day access, or access within one to two days.

UBC Library’s agreement with Sage also supported UBC authors to publish Open Access in their titles with 100% of the Article Processing Charges (APC) waived. This entitlement will end, effective December 31, 2025.

On December 31, we will also be ending our publishing agreement with the Public Library of Science Journals (PLOS).

Beginning in 2023, UBC Library was able to support open access articles by UBC authors publishing in PLOS journals. The agreement with PLOS was an annual cost paid by UBC Library that ensured all UBC authors’ APCs were 100% waived. Prior to 2023 these APCs were covered by UBC authors’ research funds, and we are returning to this model.

These decisions apply to all Library users across UBC Vancouver and Okanagan.

We will continue to assess the sustainability of our collections budget strategy and plan for projected costs over the coming years. We are committed to sharing timely information regarding any changes. 

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Past Collections Updates