about DEAL

Elsevier

Renowned scientists resign from editorial activities for Elsevier and support the aims of project DEAL. Further information can be found in the HRK press release and here.

A current list of institutions that have cancelled their contracts with Elsevier can be found here.

Project aim

The goal of Project DEAL is to conclude nationwide licensing agreements for the entire portfolio of electronic journals (E-journals) from major academic publishers from the 2017 licence year. The intention is also to bring about significant change to the status quo in relation to negotiations, content and pricing in the process. The effects of a consortium agreement at the national level should relieve the financial burden on individual institutions and bring wide-scale, lasting improvements in access to scholarly literature for academics. An open access component is also planned.

 

The potential exists for several hundred institutions – such as universities, universities of applied sciences, research institutions, state and regional libraries – to participate in such a DEAL licence.

 

The initiative was commissioned by the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany – represented by the German Rectors’ Conference, the HRK. To carry out the project, the Alliance has brought together a project group including the relevant experts from universities and other institutions. The group will be piloted by a project steering committee comprising members from the highest levels of management at universities and other institutions. The spokesperson for the project steering committee is Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Horst Hippler, President of the German Rectors’ Conference. Contact persons for the project group are Dr. Antje Kellersohn, Director of the University Library Freiburg, and Mr. Frank Scholze, Director of the KIT Library Karlsruhe, the two members of the project group seconded from the HRK.

Project structure

Project group

  • Antje Kellersohn, University Library Freiburg (spokesperson for the project group)
  • Bernhard Mittermaier, Central Library FZ Jülich
  • Hildegard Schäffler, Bavarian State Library Munich
  • Ralf Schimmer, Max Planck Digital Library Munich
  • Frank Scholze, KIT Library Karlsruhe (deputy spokesperson for the
    project group)
  • Manfred Walter, University library of HTW Berlin
  • + guests and experts

Project staff

  • Wiebke Beckmann, University Library Freiburg (communications and publicity)
  • Laura Hoppmann, Max Planck Digital Library Munich (bibliometrics, data acquisition)